Ground Level®: Amplifying Community Voices

Your story is powerful. The stories you share with others honor the complexity of our communities while forging a more equitable and vibrant future.

Call 651-228-4800 and leave us a voice memo. If you're more comfortable texting, you can text “Hello” to 1-833-870-4111. You can also email us at tell@mpr.org and join in on conversations in our Ground Level Facebook group.

We’d like to hear your thoughts and questions. Your ideas about solutions. How are your communities? What are you seeing today? And what do you want to see tomorrow?

Note that while we will exercise editorial judgment for language, length and avoiding personal attacks, we will not sacrifice your meaning. We will ensure your main message comes through on air and online.

Why move to rural Minnesota?
We asked sources in our Public Insight Network why they had moved to (or back to) rural Minnesota and how the experience has been. The benefits and challenges seem to break down into three categories: community, lifestyle and economics. Here’s what some of our sources had to say.
After inflation, county spending flat; tax revenue portion rising
Spending by Minnesota’s 87 counties has declined slightly over 10 years when adjusted for inflation, the new annual report from the state auditor shows. Property taxes are gradually accounting for more of the counties’ revenue.