The program speaker for the Jan. 11 Rotary Club of Edina meeting was Judy Tillius, general manager for Southdale Center in Edina.
Rotarian Kelley Burnett gave her Classification Talk at the meeting. We also heard from Sutton McGraw about the upcoming Rotary Bowling Night, set for Feb. 3, and Youth Service Director Kip Peterson, who spoke briefly of all the programs our club is involved in for youth.
Click on the link below for more on the meeting...
On a cold, blustery January day, President San Asato called to order the meeting of the Rotary Club of Edina at 12:40 p.m. He recognized those participating in the meeting, including greeters—San Asato, Sue Spalding and Dan Stolfa; front desk personnel—Hannalore Brucker and Jen Garske; and our photographer—John Flynn.
The invocation was given by Gordy Lewis and Jen Tregarthen introduced guests and visiting Rotarians.
Sutton McGraw, who is co-chairing the Rotary Bowling Night with John Buttolph, encouraged members to attend the Saturday, Feb. 3, event at the Park Tavern in St. Louis and requested donations of prizes.
Kip Peterson, Director of Youth Service, reported on the many Youth Service projects in which our club is involved, including the Leadership Ethics Seminar, Camp Enterprise, the Edina High School Interact Club, Rotary Youth Exchange, Student Guests at meetings, Andy & Elmer’s Apple Dumpling Adventure program (a reading program that introduces elementary school children to Rotary’s Four-Way Test), and the Rotary Youth Leadership Academy (RYLA).
Kelley Burnett, business owner with American Family Insurance, gave her Classification Talk and shared that she grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she was a cheerleader and met her husband (also a cheerleader), and obtained a degree in business. She and her husband moved to the Twin Cities where both received their MBAs from the Carlson School at the University of Minnesota, settled in Edina, and are raising two children.
Our speaker, Judy Tullius, general manager of Southdale Center in Edina, was introduced by Brad Hepp. The first indoor shopping mall in the country, Southdale Center is among the holdings of Simon Properties, a Fortune 500 Company. Committed to growth through joint ventures, the focus for Southdale Center is development that will focus on creating lifestyle options for people who live in and visit the area. Joint ventures include housing (One Southdale Place), a hotel (Homewood Suites), and a variety of entertainment venues, restaurants and shops. Currently, Southdale is in the midst of a large retail anchor repositioning with JC Penney being replaced by Lifetime Fitness (a facility that will include sports facilities, spas, co-working spaces, classes, a café, a kid’s activity center, and a rooftop pool).
Many of the facilities at Southdale Center are being renovated, enhanced, and updated. Additionally, the center’s footprint is being re-platted on the northwest to include a Shake Shack, and on the southwest to include a Restoration Hardware complex that will offer the ultimate in experiential shopping—terraces, an art gallery, and showrooms that are reminiscent of an Italian villa.
At the end of her presentation, Ms. Tullius invited Rotarians to give her suggestions of unique and creative ways Southdale Center could be used. In appreciation and assisted by Don Hutchison, she drew names of attendees who won a blanket...just for listening. Thereafter, Don thanked our speaker.
At 12:27 p.m. President San shared “words of wisdom” that have become a hallmark of his closing remarks, and turned us back out to the cold and blustery day.
