By Henry Rohlf

Residents are invited to attend a celebration Saturday for the completion of two new projects in Albert Lea.

The dog park and the Cellfie Tour projects were funded by a grant the city received from the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation for $10,000 each, as well as other donations.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be at 10 a.m. at the dog park, located in Brookside Park south of the Boathouse on Richway Drive.

The 1.5-acre dog park is split between a one-fourths acre area for small dogs and a 1 1/4-acre area for larger dogs.

The Rotary Club of Albert Lea led the project, raising over $25,000 for the fence and other amenities.

Three residents designed the Cellfie Tour, which highlights different downtown buildings through the use of QR codes and selfie stations. When people scan the QR codes, historical information about the buildings appears.

The following is a roundup of other events taking place this weekend:

 

Friday

The Freeborn County Arts Initiative, 224 S. Broadway, will continue its exhibit titled “Animal, Vegetable, Mineral Art” from 1 to 4 p.m. The exhibit will run through Saturday.

The Albert Lea Art Center, 226 W. Clark St., will continue its gallery exhibit titled “Art Works From Our Travels” from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday. The exhibit will run through July 9.

The Worth County Fair is this weekend and includes lots of fun! Events started Tuesday and include 4-H events, a livestock weigh-in, dog and pet shows, hypnotists, and much more. One-day passes cost $5 and all-week passes cost $10; they must be purchased by 3 p.m. This week, entertainment will include the borderline band, a tractor pull and a Buddy Holly tribute.

Alden’s Morin Lake Days will kick off at noon Friday with the Morin Lake Days medallion hunt and continue through Sunday. The Tribune printed a full schedule of events in Wednesday’s Tribune.

Get in tune with your inner self and others at Project Earth starting at noon at Harmony Park. There will be music, food, vendors and troubadours.

Wedgewood Park will host an afternoon of slippin’ and slidin’ from 1 to 3 p.m. Make sure to bring your swimsuit and towel so that you can try out the huge slip ’n slide at this free event.

 

Saturday 

Alden’s Morin Lake Days continues throughout the day.

Project Earth continues at Harmony Park with music, food, vendors and troubadours.

The Albert Lea Farmers Market will offer local produce, baked goods, meats, crafts, gluten-free goods, flowers, bedding plants and more from 9 a.m. to noon at the parking lot outside Northbridge Mall.

The Alden American Legion will host a bean bag tournament. Sign-up begins at 11:30 a.m. with the tournament to start at noon. Cost is $50 per team. Teams play until double elimination. Bach Swine Band will perform from 8 p.m. to noon for a street dance.

The Meraki Studios will host a block party from noon to 3 p.m. that includes a mega bounce house, hula hoop contests, games, face painting and an adult bean bag contest.

The Albert Lea Grizzlies will host the North Iowa Bucks in its second-to-last game this season. The game will start at 5 p.m. at Frank Hall Park.

 

Sunday

Project Earth wraps up at 3 p.m. at Harmony Park.

The “Moo-ing” Lake Days in Alden will wrap up at 1 p.m. Starting at 8 a.m., activities will include a Lion’s Club pancake breakfast at Alden City Hall, canoeing and a tug of war at 1 p.m. at Northpark.

The Masonic Lodge will have its Amaranth Breakfast from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. The breakfast costs $7 and will include amaranth pancakes, eggs, sausages, juice, milk and coffee. This breakfast will occur monthly on the third Sunday until January.