February 15, 2002 - Xcel Energy is making a move to acquire 100 percent of its outstanding shares of NRG Energy. The Minnesota based utility has a majority stake in NRG but says it wants full control so that it can restructure the struggling independent power producer. Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports....
February 18, 2002 - LaVelle Neal, who covers the Minnesota Twins for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, talks about spring training from Fort Myers, Florida. The team survived Major League Baseball's off-season talk of contraction this year, thanks in part to a decision by the Minnesota courts that requires the team to honor its lease at the Metrodome. Still, it's a strange year for the Twins, who could be playing their last season.
February 18, 2002 -
February 18, 2002 - A House Committee has defeated a bill that would have built a new football stadium for the Minnesota Vikings and University of Minnesota. Both teams have been seeking a new stadium because they say the Metrodome is outdated and they say they can't make enough money in it. However, lawmakers are cool to the idea of building a new stadium when the state is facing budget problems and the Vikings are under lease until 2011. Minnesota Public Radio's Tom Scheck reports...
February 18, 2002 - The contributions of African-Americans in the railroad industry will be the topic of a forum later today commemorating Black History Month. African-American labor helped build the railroads that were key to the development of the United States and the Upper Midwest. That work sparked the black labor movement. It also inspired many black inventors who's ideas helped the industry grow. Joining us on the line is Brian Clark, an electrical engineer with Minneapolis' light rail project, and one of the keynote speakers at today's forum.
February 18, 2002 - There's a good chance someone you know has a criminal record. Hundreds of thousands of Minnesotans have a conviction for a crime in their past. In most cases they've paid their fines and served their time. However their criminal record follows them everywhere. It prevents many from getting work or a place to live. Some say after a period a time most criminal records should be sealed, what some call expunged. Others say it's important for employers and others to know as much as possible about someone's past. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Olson reports.
February 19, 2002 - MPR’s Jeff Horwich reports how the use of technology is helping to make planting crops a precise science. Instead of kicking back during the winter, many farmers are now keeping busy…at the computer. They’re using global positioning systems to do what’s called "precision agriculture," which uses satellite coordinates to help map their fields.
February 19, 2002 - MPR's Tim Pugmire reports that hours after a Minnesota House committee rejected legislation to build a football stadium for Vikings and Gophers, another panel approved two bills Monday to build a new home for the Twins. Both bills would help build a major league ballpark in St. Paul, but they include different approaches to financing the projects. Lawmakers also want to give St. Paul voters the ultimate approval.
February 19, 2002 - Hennepin County is entering the Twins stadium debate in an attempt to keep the baseball team in Minneapolis. County Commissioners today (Tuesday) approved a $370-million dollar plan that would raise a variety of taxes and user fees and utilize both private and public money. Minnesota Public Radio's Art Hughes reports.
February 20, 2002 - Burlington Nothern Santa Fe are changing car regulations regarding wheat and grain cargo.