January 21, 1997 - Many of the residents forced to move by the closing of a Hopkins mobile home park last fall have come face to face with Minnesota's affordable housing crunch - housing costs are rising faster than a lot of peoples' wages. The mobile home residents were given a cash settlement by a developer to help them relocate. Some used the money to move to another mobile home. Others found apartments. About a third of the residents used the cash to buy a home. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Olson reports. Christine Mcgovern knew it would be a stretch but she took a risk. She used her settlement of a few thousand dollars from the closing of the Hopkins mobile home park for a down payment on a house in Robinsdale. The monthly mortage payment of $600 was more than a third of her income - larger than most lenders say is prudent. Two weeks before Christmas McGovern lost
January 20, 1997 - Ambassador Andrew Young says his friend Martin Luther King, Jr. "did everything he could to be an ordinary person but became a man of destiny." Young worked with King in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and was on the motel balcony next to him when a sniper killed King. Young spoke today in Minneapolis at the 7th annual Martin Luther King,Jr. day breakfast sponsored by the General Mills Foundation. We have a couple of excerpts of Ambassador Young's remarks. Ambassador Young said the civil rights work to be done in this country is what he calls integrating the nation's money. Young says people whose neighborhoods are redlined by lenders are like residents of an underdeveloped nation living inside the United States.
January 16, 1997 - One estimate places the number of homeless teenagers in Minneapolis at well over 1500. There's room for several dozen at emergency shelters, while many others find a temporary place to stay with friends or relatives. Others live in cars or vacant buildings before they move on. Youth advocates say homeless teens need permanent housing before they can begin getting their lives back together. A refurbished apartment building opened in Minneapolis recently with 30 units of permanent housing for homeless young people. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Olson reports. Stereotypes of homeless teenagers melt away on meeting 'Amy'. Wearing a new flannel shirt and blue jeans, the self confident sixteen year old could just as easily be class president instead of a teenager who's been on the move for two years.
December 23, 1996 - Midday presents a Voices of Minnesota program, highlighting conversations with businessman Fred Myers, who started a St. Paul company that employs chronic alcoholics; and Roberta Davis, one of Minnesota's foremost jazz vocalists.
December 23, 1996 - On this Voices of Minnesota feature, an interview with St. Paul jazz vocalist Roberta Davis. Subjects of racism, family and the complexity of jazz are discussed.
December 12, 1996 - The Minneapolis City council today narrowed to two the number of possible downtown sites for a proposed new Twins stadium. And they adopted a resolution which leaves open the door for partial public financing of a new ball park.
November 18, 1996 - Part 2 of 2 of an interview with writer Meridel Le Sueur.
November 18, 1996 - Part 1 of 2 of an interview with writer Meridel Le Sueur.
November 15, 1996 - MPR’s Dan Olson profiles Fredrik Melius Christiansen, a Norwegian-born violinist and choral conductor in the Lutheran choral tradition. Christiansen founded the choir at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota. Olson interviews St. Olaf choral conductor Anton Armstrong about Christiansen.
October 18, 1996 - Blend Memorial Day with Thanksgiving and you get something close to the ancient Aztec observance called Days of the Dead. The two day observance in early November is for honoring the memory of family and friends. The celebration is traced to the indigenous people of Mexico. The Days of the Dead is one of the most popular celebrations in Mexico and is growing in popularity in Minnesota.