The Heights Theater in Columbia Heights will change ownership in early 2026, ending a 27-year run under owner Tom Letness. In a Facebook announcement, the theater said it will be acquired by Brody Sheldon and the Schopf family, who own and operate the Music Box Theatre in Chicago. They are partnering with Minnesota native Ryan Oestreich in the purchase. The Heights plans to close after its annual New Year’s Day screening of “Holiday Inn.” It will reopen Jan. 9 with a showing of Jim Jarmusch’s “Father Mother Sister Brother.” According to the announcement, reopening events will also include a Robert Redford retrospective and the theater’s 17th Film Noir festival in partnership with Trylon Cinema. ...

The Blaine City Council approved a resolution on Dec. 1 to receive a feasibility report and order improvements, along with the preparation of plans and specifications, for a rehabilitation project on South Lake Boulevard. The vote was 6-1, with Council Member Jess Robertson opposing. Director of Engineering Dan Schluender said the council had ordered the feasibility report in September. The project area runs along a segment of South Lake Boulevard from the west end at Lakes Parkway to a northeast end that also connects with Lakes Parkway. ...

The Fridley City Council voted 4-0 on Nov. 24 to approve the first reading of an ordinance that would raise fees for renting the city’s open-air park shelters. Mike Maher, the city’s parks and recreation director, told the council the city’s open-air shelters are available from May through October and were rented 96 times in 2025. Reservations for the 2026 season open on Jan. 5. The fees were last updated in 2023. Maher said the new fees aim to balance affordability and accountability. ...

Coon Rapids boasts a new Panda Express, which opened the morning of Dec. 1. Original Article

Panda Express held a grand opening Monday morning, Dec. 1, for its new Coon Rapids location at 3465 124th Avenue, opening on the site formerly occupied by White Castle. Original Article

The Anoka County Sheriff’s Office received an unusual message from an Oak Grove resident this month after a deputy helped track down two runaway animals. According to the email, the resident was out of state when a security-camera alert showed a sheriff’s squad in the driveway. A mini horse and mini donkey had slipped out of their enclosure overnight while a family member was house-sitting. A passerby reported the pair after spotting them near the roadway and worrying they could be hit. ...

Residents of Columbia Heights raised concerns about possible police involvement in a suspected immigration enforcement action on the morning of Nov. 24. Resident Brenna Zeimet told the City Council that she and several neighbors were standing in support of immigrant community members when, according to her account, agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrived. Zeimet described what she believed was improper conduct by both enforcement personnel and officers with the Columbia Heights Police Department. ...

At its Nov. 24 meeting, the Columbia Heights City Council unanimously approved a fourth amended loan agreement for the redevelopment site at 4300 Central Ave. NE. The redevelopment plan includes between 20,000 and 60,000 square feet of retail space, 400 to 600 market-rate apartments above retail on the east side, a central park amenity, significant infrastructure upgrades, underground parking, low-density single-family housing to the west, and environmental features such as solar panels and rain gardens. ...

At its Nov. 24 meeting, the Columbia Heights City Council unanimously approved an ordinance that will end the sale of flavored tobacco products by Jan. 1, 2028, and begin phasing out all tobacco licenses through attrition. The ordinance takes effect July 1, 2026. Two provisions—the ban on flavored tobacco sales and a one-time succession transfer option—take effect Jan. 1, 2028. A motion to move the flavored tobacco sales ban up one year to 2027 failed on a 3-2 vote. Council Members Justice Spriggs and Connie Buesgens supported the change; Mayor Amada Marquez Simula and Council Members Laurel Deneen and Rachel James opposed it. ...

As I write this, Vikings quarterback and former Michigan darling J.J. McCarthy has entered concussion protocol, which likely means Max Brosmer will start against a Seattle Seahawks defense ranked fifth in EPA per play, seventh in points allowed and ninth in yards allowed. That might be a good thing. Not because I’m spiteful — I actually think it’s good for McCarthy long-term. A lot of people, including a fellow AMM sports reporter, have written about how we need to be patient with the kid and let him keep being the guy. And I don’t want what I’m about to write — about his ability to sling a football with force and velocity — to come across as a personal slight. By all accounts, he seems like a grounded person, a good teammate, engaged to be married, a father, and a personality I genuinely enjoy listening to. ...