Minnesota News

For Black History Month, MPR News is featuring two coaching programs that bring together older black men with the younger generation. Both try to demonstrate the essence of a West African tradition of learning from the past.

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued three draft permits this week that are needed to build the Line 3 oil pipeline replacement project, marking another step in Enbridge Energy’s five-year effort to build the controversial pipeline across northern Minnesota.

The risk of spring flooding in the Red River Valley has been reduced slightly because of limited precipitation in the last few weeks, although National Weather Service forecasters said Thursday there's still a lot of moisture in the system.

The campaign organizers argue that officials need to ensure that developers who build affordable housing are also compensating workers fairly.

As the new coronavirus has spread in Iran and parts of Europe, Minnesota health officials say it's only a matter of time before the state sees its first confirmed case. Gov. Tim Walz says Minnesota is prepared to deal with COVID-19.

Minnesotans support refugee resettlement in their communities by a wide margin, according to a new MPR News/Star Tribune Minnesota Poll.

The encouraging signs include a rise in home and apartment construction and a reduction in renter evictions. But homelessness rose last year and racial disparities in homeownership persist. The trends have been noted previously by other organizations.

Gov. Tim Walz has proposed more funding to reduce farm accidents by reimbursing farmers who retrofit their tractors and grain bins with safety equipment. He was joined at a news conference by Michele Gran, the mother of Landon Gran, who was 18 when he died in a grain bin accident last August.

“People that work in these buildings are totally devastated. They don't know what to do,” one downtown merchant said. No injuries were reported. The fire remains under investigation.

A city building dubbed Sandbag Central will soon be open for business as Fargo leaders prepare for spring flooding along the Red River.