Star Tribune
Are Rochester’s nonpartisan elections becoming a battleground for party politics?
In all three races, Faith in Minnesota is deploying not only volunteers but also financial resources. The group purports to have raised $21,000 in local money to pay for an organizer and other expenses, though Olivia Bergen, its paid staffer, declined to say whether the group is using any additional outside funds to support its efforts in Rochester. Last year the group spent $330,000 lobbying, according to state records.
Joe Powers,cq/ec a local businessman known for his political involvement, said his biggest concern is what kind of influence Faith in Minnesota will have over the candidates if they are elected. He said while it’s common for different interested groups to get behind candidates, he has never seen a bloc of city candidates lining up alongside an outside group with partisan ties.
“This hasn’t worked out good for either party,” Powers said. “I don’t care if you are a Democrat or Republican or whatever, are we happy with where we are at? Why would you want to bring that to your city?
To push back against Faith in Minnesota’s mobilization, Powers held a meeting last month to warn other hospitality industry leaders about the “potential formation of a council that is unfavorable to business interests.” About 50 people attended the meeting, he said. Concerns were raised about wage increases, unionization and other policy considerations which the Rochester City Council has typically taken a hands-off approach.
“They are anti-growth,” Powers said. “And if they win the election, all three will be owned by an outside group.”
Organizers with Faith in Minnesota dispute those claims, saying the group’s Rochester agenda was adopted locally after interviews with more than 500 residents — without any partisan involvement. They also note other groups have sought to influence local elections without the same level of scrutiny. In the primaries, for instance, the GOP-aligned Minnesota Private Business Council spent $10,000 supporting candidates challenging the Faith in the Minnesota bloc.
A man was fatally shot in St. Paul’s North End neighborhood Saturday night, according to police, marking the city’s 21st homicide of the year.
St. Paul Police responded to reports of a person shot at an area near the intersection of Wheelock Parkway and Woodbridge Street around 10 p.m. Saturday. They found a man with gunshot wounds lying on the ground near the intersection.
St. Paul Police aided the man until St. Paul Fire Department medics arrived. The man was pronounced dead shortly after he arrived at Regions Hospital.
Police are seeking information that could help identify what happened and who is responsible. The Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office will identify the victim.
Some people called 911 after a loved one overdosed. Others are struggling with anxiety, depression or post-traumatic stress disorder. Still others wanted help convincing their teenagers to go to school.
No matter the circumstances, the Bloomington Police Department has a new goal: to get them a therapy appointment within one to two days of their call.
“I don’t know of another agency in the country that is doing this,” Police Chief Booker Hodges said.
After George Floyd’s murder in 2020 provoked an international debate on policing, some departments boosted their efforts to partner with social workers. Other cities, such as Minneapolis, contracted with community organizations to send mental health experts to some 911 calls.
The Bloomington Police Department hired two licensed marriage and family therapists to meet with people for free in their homes, at the local government center or virtually in telehealth appointments. It’s since brought on two interns from St. Mary’s University of Minnesota to help boost the division and supply students with the clinical hours they need to graduate. The therapists work to help stabilize people in crisis, with the goal of getting them into long-term therapy, if it’s needed.
“Once somebody is in crisis, we have to strike while the iron is hot to get them to engage in services,” said Luke Campbell, the therapist who oversees Bloomington Community Brain Health Services.
But doing that was often simpler said than done. The city estimates that 4,200 residents are uninsured, and even people who are insured often told police they faced wait times of eight to 10 weeks to see a therapist.
In the first seven months of the pilot program, the therapists received 44 referrals from police officers, the social workers who already partner with officers, or local schools. The program is meant to be a short-term solution that helps people until they can get into longer-term treatment.
Two hikers who reported they were lost in Bear Head Lake State Park Saturday were located in a remote area with the help of a drone, the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office said.
One hiker called 911 after 6 p.m., but deputies had trouble making contact because of bad cell phone service, according to a sheriff’s office news release. Law enforcement obtained GPS coordinates that showed the caller’s location at the time of the call. The hiker called 911 a second time and told dispatch there was a second hiker.
Bear Head Lake State Park is located between Tower and Ely. The hikers were not local and unfamiliar with the park.
Deputies found the hikers in a “very remote area” using a drone, the news release said. Members of the St. Louis County Rescue Squad helped lead the hikers out of the woods. The two were not equipped to spend the night outside, but neither needed medical attention.
Rep. Maxwell Frost says Congress should return “as soon as possible” to replenish relief funds
Full interview: Speaker Mike Johnson on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan”
Open: This is “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” Oct. 13, 2024
Rep. Maxwell Frost says Congress should return “as soon as possible” to replenish relief funds
Full interview: Speaker Mike Johnson on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan”