May 22, 2006 - MPR’s Brandt Williams reports that there's much to do before the new Twins stadium becomes a reality. Hennepin County commissioners must still approve the tax increase...and the county must begin the process of examining the environmental impact of the downtown ballpark.
May 22, 2006 - MPR's Tom Scheck examines why the Minnesota Twins were finally successful in getting a new ballpark, after being told no so many times. The legislation authorizes public financing for most of the half-billion dollar cost of the stadium in downtown Minneapolis. The House and Senate passed the bill and Pawlenty says he intends to sign it.
May 30, 2006 - Pelican Rapids is still basically a farming community. But a decade-and-a-half of immigration has changed the town a lot. That's not just clear on Main Street - drive a few miles out of town, and life is even different on the farm. Producer Jeff Jones gives us one example.
May 30, 2006 - Drive through Pelican Rapids and it may well look like many other small Minnesota towns. But take a walk through the streets and you'll find some remarkable things about the past present and future of this place.
May 30, 2006 - Pelican Rapids is like a lot of small towns in rural Minnesota. The community of 2,300 has changed over the years. The biggest change is the people. The region is attracting retirees and summer residents with lakeside cabins. There are also immigrants, who come for work at the West Central Turkey processing plant. More people can be good for a town. But in Pelican Rapids the influx of people has created a shortage of housing. Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Reha reports.
June 5, 2006 - In Minnesota, summer is the season of roof work. But a glance at the crews overhead this time of year makes it clear most people doing that work are not from Minnesota. The residential roofing industry around the country now relies on low-priced labor by Mexican immigrants. Industry insiders say the roofing business would collapse without this migrant work force -- which includes immigrants who are in the U.S. legally and illegally. But as Minnesota Public Radio's Jeff Horwich reports, few people are happy with current state of things.
June 7, 2006 - MPR’s Perry Finelli interviews local poet who is a part of this year’s Poets on the Buses metro event. Poet reads a poem she will be performing.
June 12, 2006 - MPR’s Marisa Helms reports on the increasing importance and interest for Spanish langauge radio in the Twin Cities. Two 24-hour stations are going head to head for listeners…Radio Rey and La Invasora.
June 14, 2006 - Judge Gerald Heaney is retiring this summer after 40 years on the federal appeals court. His rulings in school desegregation cases influenced other judges around the country. He was also an advisor to a generation of leaders in the Democratic Party, including Hubert Humphrey and Walter Mondale. Mondale says Heaney didn't harbor any personal political ambitions; rather he wielded influence from the bench.
July 25, 2006 - MPR's Tom Scheck reports on the television ads of two candidates running for Minnesota's open U.S. Senate seat. Republican Congressman Mark Kennedy hit the airwaves today with a minute-long ad touting his background. His DFL opponent, Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar, focuses her ads more on her experience as a prosecutor.