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Twin Cities inflation rate among lowest in the country
Minneapolis-St. Paul became the first major metro area in the U.S. to reach the Fed’s inflation goal this spring, but leaders say it’s no time to get complacent.
MINNEAPOLIS — At a symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyo., on Friday, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell hinted at further interest rate increases by the end of the calendar year, in order to cool inflation that he says “remains too high.”
After hitting a peak of 9.1% in June 2022, the nationwide inflation rate as calculated by the Consumer Price Index decreased to 3.2% as of July 2023.
“It is the Fed’s job to bring inflation down to our 2% goal,” Powell said Friday, “and we will do so.”
By that measure, the Twin Cities are ahead of the curve. Back in May, the Minneapolis-Saint Paul region became the first major metro area in the U.S. to accomplish the 2% goal, registering an inflation rate of 1.8%. That figure, as of July, has since fallen to just 1%, meaning inflation here is lower than basically anywhere else in the entire country.
What’s behind that 1% inflation rate, exactly?
Ron Feldman, the Chief Operating Officer and First Vice President at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, attributed some of the progress to housing. An acceleration in construction across the Twin Cities, he said, is helping to drive down housing costs — which make up a large portion of the Consumer Price Index.
“We are building lots and lots of housing. If you drive around the Twin Cities, you see cranes, you see new buildings going up,” said Feldman, who also separately co-chairs the housing task force for the Itasca Project. “So that’s part of the story. And part of the story is that in other areas, they are not building as much and more people are moving there, so their housing prices are growing faster.”
According to data tracked by the Itasca Project, the seven-county metro area built 21,673 new housing units in 2022, surpassing the group’s goal of 18,000 for the fourth year in a row. Overall, the Twin Cities are on track to meet the Itasca Project’s 2030 target, which could help the region rebound from the Great Recession’s housing plunge.
“It’s all kind of linked. Housing in Edina affects housing in Minneapolis which affects housing in St. Paul,” Feldman said. “It’s one big market.”
In Minneapolis specifically, Mayor Jacob Frey said the city built 919 units of deeply affordable last year, the most in history.
According to research by Pew — which was cited by the national media in a Bloomberg article earlier this month — rents in Minneapolis have increased by only 1% since 2017, compared to a national average of 31%.
“We set a tone of increasing the supply of housing in the city of Minneapolis,” Frey said in an interview. “The investments we’ve made in housing have clearly helped us tackle inflation more so than any other city in the country.”
However, in an op-ed published this week, Feldman and fellow Minneapolis Fed Senior Vice President Alene Tchourumoff cautioned against falling into a “false sense of complacency” on inflation.
“Filling out this story, a number of observers tied this low inflation rate to a local housing market producing housing at a high rate, which naturally gives us a sense of pride. Is that sense of accomplishment deserved? Yes and no,” they wrote. “We agree that housing production should be the focus today and in the future, but it’s way too soon to declare victory.”
As Feldman and Tchourumoff noted in the op-ed, the Twin Cities are “not outperforming our peers” in terms of housing production.
According to the Itasca Project’s dashboard, Minneapolis-Saint Paul produced 6.7 new housing units per 1,000 people in 2022 — higher than cities like Seattle, Portland, Boston, San Francisco, Chicago and Pittsburgh, but far lower than places like Austin, Charlotte and Dallas.
“The housing market isn’t free from what government policy is. It’d be great for the state, and localities, to take policy actions that make it easier to build more housing,” Feldman said in an interview this week, “The bottom line is, if we don’t have more then in the long run, housing prices are going to be higher than they would be otherwise.”
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“Although it was chaotic, there was some of that chaos that might sway some people to another side,” Jake Slack, a senior at the University of St. Thomas, said.
MINNEAPOLIS — Tuning out politics with just weeks until an election can admittedly be difficult, but if you thought young voters weren’t paying attention – think again.
“I actually did watch the whole thing with some of my roommates,” Peter Kapsner, a junior at the University of St. Thomas who leans towards former President Donald Trump, said. “I thought it was really good debate. Both candidates had good game plans that they stuck to.”
“I just feel like it was much more of a debate than what we saw last time,” Deya Ahmed, a sophomore at the U of M, said.
Many we spoke with said they watched parts or the entirety of the debate.
“I think what really needed to be done was to bring excitement to voting, which I don’t think happened during the debate, especially for the youth vote,” Drue Bower, a first-year grad student at the U of M, said.
No matter who we spoke with, students on every side of the political aisle told us they were watching, forming new opinions, or deepening their connection to thoughts they already had.
“I do think I’m going to end up voting for Kamala when the election comes around,” Gavan Townsend, a third-year student at the U, said.
“I would say I’m more towards the right,” Yaphet Gg, a third-year student at the U of M, said. “I think he’s generally doing a good job of trying to attack Kamala for his base,”
That also includes voters who may have fallen more into the undecided camp.
“I was kind of leaning more towards Trump, but this kind of has me thinking a little bit more about, like, how level-headed the Harris campaign is,” U of M freshman Chase Ben-Avraham said.
What could sway young voters, they say – Taylor Swift’s endorsement of the Harris/Walz campaign, though not all agree.
“If Trump starts attacking her, they’re going to react and go, ‘Okay, this is it, I’m voting,'” Henry Kopp, a sophomore at the U, said.
“If you’re a Hulk Hogan, Harrison Butker or Kid Rock fan, you know, you’re probably already leaning right,” Benjaman Lindeen, a fourth-year student at the U of M, said. “If you’re, you know, really swayed by what Steve Kerr or Stephen Curry or Taylor Swift say, you’re probably already voting left. So I think from even a statistic standpoint, it’s probably marginal at best.”
With young voters paying close attention, they say you should do the same.
“Although it was chaotic, there was some of that chaos that might sway some people to another side,” Jake Slack, a senior at St. Thomas, said.
Synchronize your watches! The award-winning best new musical sets its destination to the Orpheum.
MINNEAPOLIS — You don’t need to build a flux capacitator to travel back in time and relive an ’80s phenomenon.
“Back to the Future the Musical,” which won the 2022 Olivier Award for Best New Musical, is coming to the historic Orpheum Theatre in downtown Minneapolis at the beginning of fall.
The London’s West End and Broadway show is based on the 1985 blockbuster film that spawned two sequels: “Back to the Future Part II” in 1989 and “Back to the Future Part III” in 1990. All three films combined grossed nearly a billion dollars.
The award-winning musical stars Caden Brauch as Marty McFly, Don Stephenson as Doc Brown and Ethan Rogers as Biff Tannen.
“Back to the Future the Musical” officially premiered at the Manchester Opera House on March 11, 2020. It then had a huge run at London’s West End beginning in 2021 and hit Broadway in August of 2023.
The musical is directed by Tony Award-winner John Rando with original music by multi-Grammy-winners Alan Silvestri (“Avengers: Endgame”) and Glen Ballard (Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror”), alongside songs from the movie including “The Power of Love,” “Johnny B. Goode” and “Back in Time.”
“Back to the Future the Musical” will play at the Orpheum from Tuesday, Sept. 10 to Sunday, Sept. 22.
Tickets, which start at $50, will go on sale at HennepinTheatreTrust.org on Friday, June 14, 2024, at 10 a.m.
The production contains flashing lights, strobe effects, pyrotechnics and is recommended for ages 6 and up.
Its run time is 2 hours and 35 minutes and includes one intermission.
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Marina Dougall, 36, was last seen in Minneapolis in September of last year but wasn’t reported missing until May 2024.
ANOKA COUNTY, Minn. — The Anoka County Sheriff’s Office is asking the public to help find a missing Anoka County woman who they believe is without critical medication.
Marina Dougall, 36, was last seen in Minneapolis in September of last year but wasn’t reported missing until May 2024. Police said her family hasn’t heard from her since she was last seen.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension released a statement Wednesday, saying Dougall was known to frequent the Franklin Avenue North area of Minneapolis as well as places throughout Anoka County and across the Twin Cities metro. Investigators said she may have been in the area of Burnett County, Wisconsin last September, before being dropped off at the Norwoood Inn in Roseville.
MISSING: Investigators believe Marina Dougall may have been in the in the Burnett County, Wisconsin, area Sept. 20-22, 2023, and then dropped off at the Norwood Inn in Roseville. Anyone with information on Marina Dougall’s whereabouts is urged to call 911. pic.twitter.com/HhfAeFGiJZ
— Minnesota BCA (@MnDPS_BCA) September 11, 2024
The BCA said Dougall has a medical condition that requires medication, and that she also has a history of mental health and substance abuse issues.
Dougall is described as 5’9 and 140 pounds, with brown hair and green eyes. She also has a chipped front tooth, flower tattoos on her right hand and left shoulder, a snowflake tattoo on her right abdomen and a large tattoo on her back.
The BCA added Dougall was born in Russia and speaks with a slight accent.
If you’ve seen Dougall or know any information about her whereabouts, you’re urged to call 911 or contact the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office at 763-324-5209.
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