February 23, 2001 - A new report estimates homelessness in Minnesota has more than doubled in the last decade.The Wilder Research Center finds an estimated 21-thousand people in the state are without permanent and stable housing on any given night. That's up from 63-hundred in 1991. The report points to many reasons for increase. At the top of the list is a lack of affordable housing for low-wage earners. Minnesota Public Radio's Lynette Nyman reports.
January 22, 2001 - The push to use reusable energy is building up at the Capitol.
January 18, 2001 - In a hearing at the Minnesota capitol today (Thursday) members of the senate transportation committe sounded off on the Minnesota Department of Transportation. The committe took a straw vote to indicate their dissastisfaction with the Department's construction project for Crosstown Highway 62 in the southern metro area. Despite the committee's unhappiness over the project, MN-DOT officials say it will go forward. Minnesota Public Radio's Lynette Nyman reports.
January 12, 2001 - The Minnesota and Wisconsin transportation departments announced today (friday) plans to suspend construction of a new bridge over the Saint Croix River. The announcement comes just days after MN-DOT commissioner Elwyn Tinklenberg failed to find federal funding for the project. Reaction to the decision is mixed. Environmentalists are calling it a victory against urban sprawl while project supporters say traffic problems in the area will remain until there's a new bridge. Minnesota Public Radio's Lynette Nyman reports.
December 22, 2000 - Each day hundreds of people visit downtown St. Paul's Town Square Park, many of them to eat lunch or catch up with friends. The city created the arboretum-like setting in 1980 as an urban park with help from a federal grant. The multi-level facility, which features an auditorium, a lot of trees and a small stream sits below a massive sloping glass roof giving views across the downtown. The facility is used for public and private functions, including lunchtime holiday concerts But next week Town Square Park will close. This year Mayor Norm Coleman eliminated the park from the city's budget. The move will save the city nearly $200,000 annually. Minnesota Public Radio's Lynette Nyman stopped by the park today to guage reaction to the impending closure.
December 21, 2000 - Minnesota's homeless population has more than doubled over the past decade. A new Wilder Research Center survey finds the largest growth in homelessness is among children in both urban and rural regions of the state. Advocates for the homeless say the lack of affordable housing is largely responsible for the increase. Minnesota Public Radio's Lynette Nyman reports.
December 6, 2000 - MPR’s Lynette Nyman reports that leaders in Minnesota's Southeast Asian community are calling on government officials to assist them in addressing the issue of domestic violence. They're also asking Hmong people with domestic problems to seek help from neighbors, elders, and counselors before tragedies happen.
December 5, 2000 - Saint Paul Mayor Norm Coleman is proposing a rebate of about 70 percent of a ten million dollar surplus in the city's budget. The proposal would return the money to residents through their Xcel Energy bills. At least one Saint Paul leader say there is no surplus to return and that the city should take care of other needs. Minnesota Public Radio's Lynette Nyman reports.
November 30, 2000 - Mark Dayton spent more than his budget allowed. He will do what he can in order to serve the public but can also try build back his finances.
November 20, 2000 - MPR’s Lynette Nyman reports that the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis has launched a survey of several hundred Hmong business owners and households in St Paul. The Fed wants to know how well the banking system is meeting the needs of Hmong entrepreneurs. They hope the survey will illuminate the obstacles to Hmong people's access to capital.