Star Tribune
Annual Minnesota homes tour show architectural influence of Frank Lloyd Wright, Japan, nature
Each cabin — available for virtual tours only — has hydronic radiant heating systems that provide a lower energy profile. Plus with a focus on mental wellness, the architect built decks and large windows with views of the forest and designed light-colored plywood walls and ceilings to reflect natural daylight throughout the interior.
The midcentury modern home was on the market for 10 minutes last year. The Minnetonka home went to the ones who wanted to renovate the home not tear it down. (American Institute of Architects Minnesota contest)
The 1954 midcentury modern home — from designers E.J. Hansen and Jay Boyle — was on the market for just 10 minutes last year, and it sold to buyers who wanted to renovate the house, not tear it down. R.A. Norsen — an admirer of Wright— originally designed and built the home. Norsen also helped pioneer the concept of “non-confined living for a confining climate.”
The home features salvaged original mahogany boards and trim reused in the sunroom and mudroom. With a focus on the environment, water collected on site adds natural restoration of the land to promote wildlife in the area. There are also plans to replace the asphalt driveway with a new gravel one.
In south Minneapolis, designers Nathaniel Tollefson, Isaac Tapp and Craft Design Build made architectural updates to the Harriet House to achieve energy efficiency without sacrificing contemporary design aesthetics. The house underwent a full energy retrofit with continuous exterior insulation, new siding, windows, mechanical systems and a full solar shingle roof to reduce the home’s energy needs and eliminate any reliance on fossil fuels.
The architects focused on making sure they used new materials to accomplish the contemporary aesthetic without it feeling out of place in the traditional neighborhood.
Built in an architect-designed community on 200 acres of restored prairie in Grant, Minn. east of the Twin Cities, the design team of Brent Nelson, Ashley Banden Bosch, Anna Beth Gunderson and PKA Architecture built the Prärie Hus to reflect German and Nordic heritage. But the home also emphasizes sustainability, accommodations for aging in place and multigenerational living in the future.
Star Tribune
Nissan, Honda confirm talks on closer collaboration but say there’s been no decision on a merger
The company has struggled for years following a scandal that began with the arrest of its former chairman Carlos Ghosn in late 2018 on charges of fraud and misuse of company assets, allegations that he denies. He eventually was released on bail and fled to Lebanon.
Honda reported its profits slipped nearly 20% in the first half of the April-March fiscal year from a year earlier, as sales suffered in China.
Toyota made 11.5 million vehicles in 2023, while Honda rolled out 4 million and Nissan produced 3.4 million. Mitsubishi Motors made just over 1 million. Even after a merger Toyota would remain the leading Japanese automaker.
All the global automakers are facing potential shocks if President-elect Donald Trump follows through on threats to raise or impose tariffs on imports of foreign products, even from allies like Japan and neighboring countries like Canada and Mexico. Nissan is among the major car companies that have adjusted their supply chains to include vehicles assembled in Mexico.
Meanwhile, analysts say there is an ‘’affordability shift’’ taking place across the industry, led by people who feel they cannot afford to pay nearly $50,000 for a new vehicle. In American, a vital market for companies like Nissan, Honda and Toyota, that’s forcing automakers to consider lower pricing, which will eat further into industry profits.
Grace Barcelow, center, a conservation specialist for Hennepin County, and Rachel Dunlap, Minnesota GreenCorps member, talk with Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church’s John Daniels about how to effectively use less salt to clear sidewalks. (Anthony Soufflé/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
About 67 bodies of water in Minnesota already have dangerous levels of chloride and 75 more are nearing the danger zone, according to the MPCA. Salt also infiltrates groundwater, the source of most drinking water in the state.
This winter the West Metro Water Alliance is focusing on faith-based organizations, which are some of the biggest users of salt to melt ice in parking lots and on sidewalks so parishioners can make it to services.
John Daniels, a volunteer at Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church, signed up for a consultation to learn more about how to use less salt and better protect the environment. His church has a snow removal contractor, but Daniels helps make sure the sidewalks are clear on busy days.
“It makes a lot of sense to me,” Daniels said of the information Barcelow and Rachel Dunlap, a MPCA GreenCorps member shared with him on a recent frigid morning. “We want to use best practices, whenever we can.”
Some key takeaways from the consultation included how little salt is needed to melt ice — roughly one granule per 3 square inches, or about a coffee cup for 10 sidewalk squares.
He said a phoenix was chosen for the display for its typical interpretation as a symbol of rebirth, transformation and self-determination, especially with the new year approaching. The mythical bird is also surrounded by black cranes with crescent moons, which “reinforces the power of intention and renewal.”
“So we took all of that together and we found it pretty inspiring, and we wanted to share that with the great state of Minnesota,” he said.
When asked, Sion declined to say how many members are part of his congregation. But he said the group organizes a series of meetings to discuss current events “in the Satanic world, so to speak,” along with board game nights, craft days and charitable endeavors – “real dark stuff,” he joked.
“We do good in the world,” he said. “We do things like charity drives a couple times a year to benefit things like [homelessness].”
