August 30, 2000 - Minneapolis and Saint Paul have had their share of zoning battles over adult businesses. But it's not just a big city problem. Several smaller communities around the state are now facing their own zoning disputes with strip clubs. Adult business owners say those local governements are hiding behind harsh zoning laws as a way to unfairly discriminate against their businesses. Mainstreet Radio's Marisa Helms reports.
August 30, 2000 -
August 30, 2000 - Industry watchers say Sun Country Airlines has a narrow window of opportunity to gain a foothold in the highly competitive battle for airline passengers loyalty. Terry Trippler publishes 1travel.com, a website for budget-conscious travelers. Trippler says he expected better second quarter financial numbers from Sun Country.
August 31, 2000 - MPR’s Jim Bickal profiles the intricate differences of the Pronto pup and the Poncho Dog. Like many things at the State Fair, the corndog business is based on tradition and family, and Bickal interviews the vendors behind these fair food staples.
August 31, 2000 - A redevelopment plan for Minneapolis's long-stagnant Block E is one big step closer to reality. Yesterday, the block's developer, McCaffery Interests of Chicago, agreed to lease terms with GameWorks to anchor the 38-thousand sqare foot entertainment complex and 4-star hotel. Today was the deadline to have an anchor tennant signed, or McCaffery would have risked losing 58-million dollars in funding. Groundbreaking is now set for mid October. Gameworks is a restaurant and interactive games chain owned by Dreamworks SKG, founded by Steven Spielberg. Star Tribune Trends Editor Neil Justin, says its like a big arcade for adults.
August 31, 2000 - The Minnesota Vikings will open their season this Sunday against the Chicago Bears at the Metrodome. On paper the Vikes had a less than stellar preseason, with one win and three losses. But editor Jeff Agrest with Pro Football Weekly in Chicago doesn't put much stock in those numbers. He says team got a lot of impressive play out of rookie quarterback Dante Culpepper. Agrest says even his critics were impressed.
September 1, 2000 - Governor Jesse Ventura made what he says will be his only visit to this year's State Fair, in contrast to his nonstop campaigning there during the governor's race in 1998. But in addition to extolling the virtues of footlong hotdogs and lemonade, Ventura does some campaigning for his party in endorsing U.S. senate candidate Jim Gibson, and uses his “Lunch With the Governor" radio show to lay out his upcoming political agenda and to poke fun at the other politicians glad-handing at the fair.
September 1, 2000 - Two of Minnesota's biggest companies, Best Buy and Target Corporation, said yesterday sales had been slower than expected. Target also said its third quarter profits would drop as a result. The share price of both companies took a hit because of the news. The August sales figures for many of the nation's biggest retailers were disappointing. Dr. Sung Won Sohn is chief economist and senior Vice President for Wells-Fargo. He's on the line now.
September 1, 2000 - California lawmakers have sent a bill to Governor Gray Davis that's aimed at collecting state sales tax on purchases made over the Internet. The measure applies only to California consumers and only to companies that have both physical stores in California that collect the sales tax AND an Internet affiliate that may not require customers to pay the tax, for example Barnes and Noble, which has stores and an ecommerce site. Assemblywoman Carole Migden of San Francisco authored the bill.
September 6, 2000 - Money problems have delayed today's (Weds) expected announcement from the Metropolitan Council that it has awarded a major contract for light rail construction. Officials expect to make the announcement next week, but in the meantime planners are recommending the Metropolitan Airports Commission increase it's contribution to the project as a way to help cover a higher-than-expected bid for the light line tunnel at the airport. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Olson reports. {Last week project managers said they were ready to recommend that the Metropolitan Council award the three hundred million Hiawatha Avenue light rail line construction contract to California-based Granite Construction Company and Minnesota-based C. S. McCrossan Company. But Tuesday, Metropolitan Council officials said a final vote on the award is delayed so planners can try find a way to cover a twenty five million dollar gap that appeared at the end of August. That's when officials learned the low bid for building the mile and half long light rail tunnel under the Twin Cities airport is one hundred ten million dollars compared to the eighty five million alloted for the project. The Metropolitan Airports Commission is managing tunnel construction. The MAC's Nigel Finney says the airport commission may need to contribute more to the project. audio . . . .we've been talking previously about a contribution of seventy million dollars. We'll be recommending at least as a staff to the commission they increase that level of participation to help offset the costs. (what might be increase?) I'd say on the order of sixteen to eighteen million dollars.