It's not every day that civic planners ask a shaman to chase away lingering spirits from a redevelopment parcel, but that was the scene in St. Paul's Frogtown neighborhood. The city of St. Paul purchased the site of the old Hmong Funeral Home. Before they call in the bulldozers, they allowed a traditional Hmong healer to give it one final blessing.

The Hmong Funeral Home at 625 Dale St. in St. Paul was the first of its kind in the Twin Cities. After the owner shuttered the business, the city worked with community groups to purchase the building with plans to demolish it and build something new.