December 11, 1998 - A federal panel has given the go-ahead for a major rebuilding and expansion plan for the Dakota, Minnesota, and Eastern Railroad. The approval by the federal Surface Transportation Board is no surprise---the board rarely denies applicants. But the decision is the first major hurdle cleared by D-M and E since the company announced its 1.4-billion dollar plan last spring. Now, both opponants and supporters say they're looking ahead to the next big decision that scrutinizes the proposal's environmental impacts. Minnesota Public Radio's Art Hughes reports. In keeping with their agressive opposition to the railroad's proposal, Rochester-area officials organized a press conference barely a half-hour after the Surface Transportation Board announced it's decision. Olmstead County board chairman Paul Wilson says the ruling points out the need to ch
December 14, 1998 - PLAYLIST!!!! United States Satellite Broadcasting, a four-year old company based in Oakdale, announced today it's selling out to a larger rival. Hughes Electronics, which owns DirecT-V, will buy U-S-S-B for an estimated 1-point-3 billion dollars. U-S-S-B provides movies, pay-per-view channels, and programming to DirecT-V subscribers, and is considered a pioneer in the direct broadcast satallite industry. Founder Stanley S-Hubbard -- of the Hubbard family that owns K-S-T-P -- says being part of Hughes will align them with the leader in the field.
December 14, 1998 - *******USE THIS VERSION********* A new film which opened last weekend offers an inside look at the music business and a slice of the Minneapolis music scene. Producer and Director Steven Greenberg, best known for his international mega-hit single "Funkytown," followed several Minneapolis bands for more than three years, documenting the glamour and excitement of their performances and the harsh realities of being a musician. Minnesota Public Radio's Chris Roberts has this report on "Funkytown" the movie.
December 15, 1998 - Rivers of red ink are threatening to drown hog producers all across the midwest. Prices are the lowest they've been in more than 25 years. It's a variation on the oldest of economic forumula's too many hogs despite healthy demand. U.S. meatpackers can't process the animals fast enough to keep ahead of the glut. Some farmers wonder if the rise of a new form of hog marketing, the contract, is causing the industry's current problems. Mainstreet Radio's Mark Steil reports: These are gloomy days for hog producers. Everyone expected a price drop, but no one thought it would get this bad. J
December 15, 1998 - St. Paul-based U-S Satellite Broadcasting is being sold to Hughes Electronics -- the owners of DirecT-V -- for approximately one-and-a-quarter billion dollars. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo has more. NARRATION: Hubbard Broadcasting, owner of the K-S-T-P television and radio stations in the Twin Cities formed U-S-S-B, at a time when many doubted consumer interest in the technology. Programming is delivered through satellite dishes the size of a pizza box. U-S-S-B has not shown a profit since going public in 1996 even thought the satellite T-V industry now serves millions of subscribers. But chairman Stanley Hubbard says that will change once the deal is complete.
December 16, 1998 - A Minneapolis city council committee has authorized issuing up to $55 million dollars in bonds to build a Target store downtown. The committee also voted to support an affirmative action plan filed by Dayton Hudson corporation, needed for the Target store project to proceed. More from Minnesota Public Radio's Eric Jansen: Minneapolis officials say Dayton Hudson's filing of its affirmative action plan has resolved the last thorny issue blocking plans for a Target store on Nicollet Mall. Dayton Hudson has said a downtown Target store is not one of its priorities --- its stores do best in suburban locations. But city leaders, including Mayor Sharon Sayles Belton, s
December 17, 1998 - A new housing development in Minneapolis' Phillips neighborhood will convert several landmark mansions into condominiums. Residents say the project is not gentrification that will push poor people out but instead is the beginning of a long awaited turn-around for the inner city neighborhood. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Olson reports. The wrecking ball has taken many of the mansions along Park avenue in the Phillips neighborhood. But a few remain, and Lutheran Social Services spokesman Bill Vanderwall says three near their headquarters building will become condominiums. The units will sell for $90,000 to $145,000. Vanderwalle says the housing and other projects in the works will change the face of the city's poorest neighborhood.
December 21, 1998 - MPR’s Dan Gunderson reports on the lefse industry in Minnesota.
December 21, 1998 - Low crop prices, a decrease in land values and poor export markets are creating a new farm crisis. In the 1980s, farmers experienced several years of the same... and as a result, Congress added a chapter to the bankruptcy code giving farmers more negotiating tools with lenders and more options to stay in business. By April, lawmakers will decide whether or not to keep the Chapter 12 provision alive in the bankruptcy code. In this first of three reports, Mainstreet Radio's Cara Hetland looks at farm bankruptcy provision... and whether Chapter 12 works, or delays the inevitable. OUT COPY:
December 21, 1998 - THE MINNESOTA VIKINGS' BEST-EVER SEASON GOT EVEN BETTER LAST NIGHT (SUN) WITH THEIR FIFTY-TO-TEN THRASHING OF THE JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS. WITH ONLY ONE REGULAR-SEASON GAME REMAINING, THE VIKINGS ARE NOW ASSURED OF FINISHING THE YEAR WITH THE BEST RECORD IN THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL CONFERENCE ... AND THAT MEANS THEY WILL ENJOY THE HOME-FIELD ADVANTAGE IN THE N-F-C PLAYOFFS. MINNESOTA PUBLIC RADIO'S WILLIAM WILCOXEN HAS THIS REPORT... --------------------------------------------------------- | D-CART ITEM: 5286 | TIME: 3:15 | OUTCUE: standard. --------------------------------------------------------- THE JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS REALLY ARE A GOOD TEAM -- THE BEST IN THEIR DIVISION, IN FACT. BUT THEY MAY NEED A REMINDER OF THAT AFTER LOSING BY FORTY POINTS TO THE MINNESOTA VIKINGS. THE BLOWOUT VICTORY WAS THE VIKINGS' FOURTEENTH WIN THIS YEAR COMPARED WITH ONLY ONE LOSS. THAT RECORD PUTS THIS YEAR'S VIKINGS IN