In downtown St. Paul, vandals sneaked into the shuttered Alliance Bank Center last weekend and trashed an entire floor by emptying fire extinguishers, throwing around appliances and damaging other property, according to St. Paul police and the mayor’s office.

Police were called to the vacant 16-story office building Sunday on reports people had been accessing the condemned structure, according to a written statement from the mayor’s office. Officers discovered extensive damage throughout a single floor, which was empty of commercial tenants.

“Unfortunately, individuals broke in and took advantage of the empty space,” said Jennifer Lor, a spokesperson for the mayor’s office, in a written statement.

“What happened at Alliance Bank is a crime,” Lor wrote. “The St. Paul Police Department will be investigating this and any other similar incidents as such. Our priority remains keeping the building safe for our first responders and keeping the public safe while the building is not occupied.”

The mayor’s office announced April 2 that the city would maintain the Alliance Bank Center’s basic utilities following troubled property owner Madison Equities’ decision to stop paying for utilities and maintenance.

The building, which has been condemned by the city, lost its last commercial tenants March 31.

— Frederick Melo

Charity bicycle sales raises more than $60K

Imagine if nearly every resident of Sunfish Lake went out and bought a new bicycle in the same four-hour window. That’s the magic of Rick’s Bike Sale.

Rick’s Bike Sale, which wrapped up its 17th year in Apple Valley on May 10, saw more than 470 donated bikes cleaned up, put back together and rolled off to new homes to the tune of more than $60,000 this year for two Dakota County nonprofit organizations.

Since its inception, Rick’s Bike Sale has donated nearly $628,000 to DARTS, a West St. Paul organization that helps seniors live more independent lives, and Kids ‘n Kinship, a program that matches youth with adult volunteers.

“One of my favorite aspects of the sale is that it really is a win-win-win-win,” said Rick Anderson, namesake of the sale, in a news release.

“Folks gladly donate the bikes and appreciate having more room in their garages. Our crew has fun getting the bikes ready for sale. Someone gets a nice, well-tuned clean bike at a great price. DARTS and Kids ’n Kinship get the money,” Anderson said. “Having a fundraiser that benefits people from start to finish is pretty remarkable.”

Of the 590 bikes donated this year, the slim inventory that did not sell were given to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and Bikes for Africa.

Anderson and his team will soon begin accepting donations — and volunteer bike mechanics — for the 18th annual sale.

— Mars King

East Ridge teacher on leave over slur

A female teacher at East Ridge High School in Woodbury was placed on administrative leave Thursday after she reportedly repeatedly used a racial slur while talking with students, officials said.

The teacher was “immediately walked out of the building” after students reported the staff member had used the slur, said Shawn Hogendorf, a spokesman for South Washington County Schools.

The teacher, who was not identified, was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, he said.

In a letter sent to families, Principal Jim Smokrovich wrote that he received a report Thursday morning that the staff member used a racial slur “while discussing inappropriate comments a student was making toward other students.”

The staff member “repeated the racial slur multiple times during the conversation,” Smokrovich wrote.

“As soon as we were made aware of this situation, we met with the students who reported what they heard the staff member say, and connected with their families,” he wrote. “Understandably, the students were upset by the use of the racial slur. We are grateful to the students who were brave enough to bring this forward and to support our East Ridge values.”

Staff are available to meet with students if they are “in need of additional support to process this incident,” he wrote.

East Ridge “does not tolerate derogatory, discriminatory or racist language,” he wrote. “As educators, we must be held to the highest possible standard. I offer my sincere apology for the actions that took place in our school.”

District officials last fall banned a substitute teacher from its classrooms after he allegedly reenacted George Floyd’s murder during classes at Woodbury High School.

Meanwhile, the South Washington County school board on Thursday night voted 5-2 to update the district’s racial equity and inclusion policy to remove duplications and clarify definitions and language. Board members Ryan Clarke and Eric Tessner dissented.

The rewritten policy states that district administrators will “condemn hate speech and expressions of racism, xenophobia, discrimination and ethnic or racial intolerance.”

Hate speech is defined in the policy as speech that either disparages, demeans, targets, “threatens or harasses a person or group based on protected class status.”

— Mary Divine