August 20, 1997 - Its been almost six months since Phillip Bither came from the Flynn Theater for the performing arts in Burlington Vermont to be curator of Performing Arts at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis. He knew that replacing his predecessor John Killacky was going to be a huge challenge, and one of the reasons he has kept such a low profile so far is because he has been hard at work preparing his first season. Now he is ready... promising a series of cutting edge music, performace art and dance featuring such well known as the Wooster Group and the Sun Ra Arkestra as well as those less well known in the U.S. such as the Teatro Tinglado puppets from mexico and the DV* Physical Theater from Britain. I spoke with Bither this afternoon and asked how the performers he might bring to the Walker might be different from those John Killacky presented.
August 20, 1997 - The New London City Council has declared a state of emergency over problems in the town's water system. For the last two weeks, the residents of the Central Minnesota town have had to boil their water. A coliform bacteria is alive and well in the water system and failure to boil the water could mean persistent stomach aches and diarrhea. The community's 1000 citizens get their water from a well and they are no strangers to orders to "boil the water", particularly in the summer. But this summer, numerous efforts to clean the well haven't worked, so community officials face a costly but necessary fate: they must build a new well. Minnesota Public Radio's Gretchen Lehmann reports.
August 20, 1997 - Over the last two years dozens of communities around the state have constructed indoor hockey rinks with help from the Minnesota Amateur Sports Commission. But the ice rink boom may be coming to an end. Communities don't seem quite as eager to get their hands on the "Mighty Ducks" grants, named after the "all-heart" hockey pee-wees of the popular Disney movies. One town has even voted down a Mighty Ducks project. Minnesota Public Radio's Bill Wareham reports.
August 20, 1997 - Giant wood and metal structures are sprouting up in a field near Taylors Falls where corn grew just two years ago. Franconia Sculpture park is primarily an artists refuge, but the sculptors who are building the huge artworks hope the public will drop by and get a better understanding of what they do. Minnesota Public Radio's Marcy Tveidt reports.
August 21, 1997 - The latest wave of immigrants arriving in Minnesota includes the parents or grandparents of earlier immigrants. A large number are from the former Soviet Union, and they have decided to live in the suburbs near their families. They want to learn English but the people who teach ESL or English as a Second Language courses are having a hard time keeping up with the demand. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Olson has more.
August 21, 1997 - A new report from the federal Education Department finds high school enrollment this fall will reach an all-time high and continue to break records for the next ten years. The reason: children from the baby boom generation of the Forties and Fifties. Education Secretary Richard Riley calls it a severe crisis that will have many implications, including the need for new school buildings. Dan Bryan is in charge of school facilities for the state department of children, families and learning. He says overall Minnesota doesn't expect the kind of growth seen nationally. But, there are other considerations.
August 21, 1997 - MPR’s John Biewen presents the second of two reports on how the growth of the black population is affecting race relations in the Twin Cities. Report includes commentary from residents, politicians, and academics.
August 21, 1997 - Northwest Airlines says special so-called "Fly Local," fares have stimulated travel in the five greater Minnesota commmunities where the new prices are being tested. The airline says it'll decide on a city by city basis whether the low fares will remain in place... probably by the end of the year Minnesota Public Radio's Mark Zdechlik reports...
August 21, 1997 - A federal appeals court says a southwestern Minnesota school can operate a school that models its curriculum on the beliefs of a religious group. As Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Collins reports, the court ruled in the case of the Wabasso school district which operated a school primarily for students of the "Brethren" religious sect and modified the curriculum based on their religious beliefs.
August 21, 1997 - MPR’s John Biewen presents the first of two reports on how the Twin Cities are responding to black newcomers. Report includes commentary from residents, politicians, and academics.