Where can a person get a bale of straw in or near St. Paul? How much do they cost? Are they available year-round or only in the fall?

The city is doing some plumbing work in our front yard. When they're done, this is probably a good time to completely start over with our small lawn.

The lawn is very uneven, gets a lot of shade and has maple trees on both sides (one in our lawn; one in the neighbors). It's on the south side of the house. The yard has a fair amount of quack grass. It also has a bit of a slope. It is pretty level for the 10 feet in front of the house, but then slopes down at a 30-40 degree angle for two feet to the sidewalk. When the city started working, I realized that there are many feet of sand directly under a small layer of topsoil. When the workers put everything back in the giant holes they dig, the sand ends up on the top.

So, I'm dealing with a lot of challenges.

I'm thinking of killing the current grass and weeds, leveling the uneven patches using a compost/soil mix and a roller, and then putting down grass seed designed for dry conditions (the maples really suck up the moisture). I'm hoping by covering the grass seed with straw, I can keep it from running off the hill in the rain (this has been a problem in the past).

Any advice? Should I do this this summer or wait until spring when the recently dug holes have settled? The idea of waiting is a sad one--things look very bad right now. What do I do about the sand problem? Does straw work to keep seeds in place? What techniques do people use to kill grass and weeds?

Thanks for any help!