March 25, 1999 - Northern States Power Company today announced plans to merge with Denver-based New Century Energies. The deal would create a company with more than six and a half BILLION dollars in revenue and customers in 12 states and several foreign countries. Finalization of the merger will require the approval of numerous state and federal regulators.
March 25, 1999 - Mainstreet Radio’s Leif Enger reports that Mille Lacs Ojibwe leaders called for cooperation and friendship after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of treaty rights. The decision affirmed an 1837 agreement allowing eight tribes to fish and hunt without state regulation in east-central Minnesota.
March 25, 1999 - It will be a year ago Monday when a tornado cut a nearly 70 mile long path of destruction through southern Minnesota. The storm practically destroyed the town of Comfrey, and the destructive winds hit hundreds of farms, knocking down houses, barns and silos. The economic hardship caused by the storm arrived just as agriculture was sinking into a financial crisis. The worst farm damage was in Brown County, where the physical and emotional rebuilding continues today.
March 25, 1999 - In the first of a series of reports, Mainstreet Radio's Brent Wolfe reports on the re-building of the trailer park in Le Center, after a devastating tornado a year ago.
March 26, 1999 - Supporters of a hunting and trapping season for Minnesota wolves suffered a setback today, as a wolf management plan that would NOT allow a season for at least five years cleared a senate committee.
March 26, 1999 - In Superior, Wisconsin, a hardware fanatics Aladdins cave is on the auction block... and drawing visitors from around the country. Berger Hardware Store opened in 1915 and closed 70 years later, crammed to the ceiling with stock that often dates back to the 1920's and 30's. The store was known to locals as the one place that stocked everything, even if it was decades out of date.
March 26, 1999 - Heading into this year's legislative session, many lawmakers declared relief for the state's struggling farmers a top priority. However, nearly three months into the session, no consensus has emerged on how to provide assistance. With spring planting only weeks away, no relief appears imminent in a marketplace where commodity prices remain low. Yesterday, more than one hundred farmers gathered at the state capitol to voice their concerns about worsening agricultural conditions and make their case for tax reforms.
March 26, 1999 - The White Earth Indian Reservation in northwestern Minnesota has long been plagued by high crime. Increased gang activity, violence and problems related to drug and alcohol abuse have frighted and frustrated tribal members. But reservation officials say a million dollar federal grant and a historic agreement with Mahnomen County has allowed the tribe, for the first time, to create its own police force.
March 29, 1999 - A Mainstreet Radio special broadcast from lobby of Nicollet Hotel in St Peter. Rachel Reabe hosts a discussion on efforts to re-build and preserve historic buildings with guests Judy Bell, of the St. Peter Heritage Preservation Commission; Charlie Nelson of the Minnesota Historical Society; and local residents.
March 29, 1999 - To close out the millennium, Minnesota Public Radio's All Things Considered presents a look back at Minnesota life in 1900 via a 12-part series, entitled “A Minnesota Century.” In this segment…the story of Lincoln Fey.