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| |  | Rendering of the Community Performing Arts Center. (Courtesy of the City of Minneapolis) |
| Riverfront amphitheater breaks ground in Northside | An outdoor amphitheater with a capacity of 8,000 is coming to north Minneapolis. On Monday, officials broke ground on the Community Performing Arts Center Amphitheater. Expect a great view of the city skyline along the riverfront. At the ceremony, Mayor Jacob Frey said he wants to see Green Day or Beyoncé take the stage. Unlikely? Yes, but with First Avenue and the Minnesota Orchestra as operators of the venue, we can still expect some outstanding acts. [MPR News / Star Tribune] | - Intrigue: The amphitheater will host 50 ticketed events a year and is expected to open next summer. For every ticket sold, $3 will be reinvested into a community fund managed by the African American Community Development Corporation. [City of Minneapolis]
- Finally: The venue is a long time coming; the project is part of a greater $350 million redevelopment of the area known as the Upper Harbor Terminal. Launched in 2015, the city aims to grow opportunities in North Minneapolis by connecting it to the Mississippi river. The land was originally home to the Dakota people and taken by the U.S. government through treaties. It later became an industrial site and shipping terminal. [MSP Mag]
- For the Northside: This project has been met with resistance from some neighborhood stakeholders throughout its development. Some have expressed concern that the amphitheater is just another way for white-owned businesses and those outside the community to profit. But judging by the extensive list of community orgs who co-signed at the ground breaking, there’s been progress since this 2020 op-ed. [Star Tribune]
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| What the Cities Are Talking About |
| State of Mpls: Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey delivered his ninth and likely final state of the city address yesterday at the American Swedish Institute. Some highlights: Frey wants over 800 police officers before he leaves office, free parking Friday nights in Uptown, and the demolition of the blighted Burger King on West Broadway. The City Council responded with their own press conference after. We’ll have an analysis of his address later. [Star Tribune] | | Big bills: Ramsey County said it spent more than $1 million due to Operation Metro Surge. About half were personnel costs, as city employees were diverted from their regular jobs. DFL lawmakers have proposed funding for cities impacted by heightened immigration enforcement, but such measures seem unlikely to overcome GOP opposition. [Pioneer Press] | | Let them cook: Women Who Cook, an all-female band that started out as a theme show in 1982, is reuniting for a Mother’s Day concert. Remarkably, the original group (full of mothers, grandmothers, and even great-grandmothers) is mostly intact. Catch them at the Dakota this Sunday. [Star Tribune] | |  | Tulips at the Lakewood Cemetery. (Tiffany Bui / City Cast Twin Cities) |
| | Check it out: I went to Lakewood Cemetery to see the newly-planted tulips (there’s about 50,000, according to a press release). In a place of grieving and remembrance, there was so much beauty. On Mother’s Day, you can memorialize mothers who have passed by creating a small bouquet from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. You can also tour the mosaic-filled Byzantine Chapel on Sunday from 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. during Doors Open. | | Great Get-Together?: The State Fair assistant police chief filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the Fair. Michael Coffey said he reported what he saw as illegal misconduct by Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher and alleges he experienced retaliation as a result. Coffey stated he saw Fletcher spray a man, already restrained on the ground by other officers, with chemical munitions to the face. Fletcher said in a statement Coffey’s allegations were false. It’s a wild story, and I highly recommend you read the entirety of Mara Gottfried’s excellent report. [Pioneer Press] | | Kudos: Congratulations to the Star Tribune newsroom for winning a Pulitzer Prize! The prestigious journalism award recognizes their work covering the Annunciation Catholic school shooting. The reporters grappled with a tragedy in their own backyard (literally, reporter Jeff Day heard the shots) while reporting out the story. Richard Tsong-Taatarii’s image of a mom running barefoot toward the school, shoe in each hand, is burned into my memory. [Star Tribune] |
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| | Wednesday, May 6 | | | Thursday, May 7 | | | |
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New Neighbor Jenna K., how does it feel to be our 74th new member? May your windshield always be free of snow! Thanks to Jenna, we’re ONE person away from reaching our member drive goal. If you’re sick of these pitches, you can shut me up for the price of just $10 a month! 😜 |
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