Category: Rural Headlines

(photo courtesy of University of Minnesota) EXCERPT: “The importance of connecting and empowering women leaders across Greater Minnesota has perhaps never been so evident as it is today. ‘Women’s leadership is not just a ‘nice-to-have,’ we are finding it’s a matter of survival for our small towns,’ says Kate Stower, a recent graduate from the ...

EXCERPT: “The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has issued an air quality alert for northern Minnesota, effective Tuesday, July 13, beginning at noon through Friday, July 16, at 9 a.m. The affected area includes Ely, Hibbing, International Falls, Two Harbors, Grand Marais, Grand Portage, Bemidji, Roseau, Moorhead, East Grand Forks, Brainerd, Alexandria and the tribal ...

EXCERPT: “Vern Greyn was standing in the raised bucket of a tractor, trimming dead branches off a tree, when he lost his balance. He fell 12 feet and struck his head on the concrete patio outside his house in this small farming town on the central Montana plains. Greyn, then 58, couldn’t move. His wife called ...

EXCERPT: “Air source heat pumps are on the rise in rural Minnesota and utility officials expect momentum to grow as a result of the state’s new energy conservation law. A year-and-a-half-old collaboration between the nonprofit Center for Energy and Environment and five outstate Minnesota utilities is aiming to make heat pumps mainstream by the end of ...

EXCERPT: “In autumn of 2020, the International Falls Police Department tested officer-worn cameras for about six weeks but ultimately chose not to keep them. It’s not that the department didn’t like what it saw. Captain Mike Kostiuk said the cameras were ‘obviously a great tool that we’d love to have’ for a department that wants to ...

EXCERPT: “A lifeguard shortage is hitting the Twin Cities and greater Minnesota, forcing some pools to close and beaches go unsupervised. St. Cloud is closing all seven of its wading pools for the entire summer. The city says COVID-19 restrictions were rolled back too late for it to budget for pool operations and salaries for ...

EXCERPT: “May 31, 1921. In a period of less than 24 hours, white citizens burned much of Greenwood — Tulsa’s vibrant Black community — and murdered as many as 300 people. For Crookston native Tim Madigan, the journey began in the year 2000. He was writing feature stories for the Fort-Worth Star Telegram when his editor ...

EXCERPT: “According to Explore Minnesota, the state entity that tracks tourism, revenue from tourism went from $16 billion in 2019 to just over $8 billion in 2020 but experts expect a big comeback in the local travel business this summer. ‘We’re back up to numbers ahead of 2019,’ General Manager of Cragun’s Resort on Gull ...

EXCERPT: “State lawmakers plan to return to work for a special session in June. Executive Director of the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities’ (CGMC) Bradley Peterson says that while it’s good that leaders have an agreement on the budget… ‘We’re urging all of them and the legislature at large to remember that there are a ...