Blaine splits Meadowbrook road project after bids come in over budget The first phase of Blaine’s Meadowbrook Area street reconstruction project will move forward this year after bids came in higher than the city had budgeted for the full project. The Blaine City Council voted 5-1 May 4 to award a nearly $1.6 million contract to North Valley Inc. of Nowthen for the first phase of the project. Council Member Jess Robertson voted against the contract. ...

When St. Francis voted to return to the former Minnesota state flag early this year, city leaders framed the decision as a message to state officials Months later, that message has echoed across the state, with more than a dozen cities choosing to fly the former design or keep it displayed in city buildings. Supporters of the former flag say the issue is less about the image itself than the process used to replace it. They argue voters should have had a direct say before Minnesota retired a flag that had flown in some form for generations. ...

A request for six speed humps on Quincy Boulevard drew competing concerns over speeding, school traffic, snow removal and cost before the Blaine City Council voted to table the proposal May 4. The council voted 5-1 to table an item that would have added the speed humps on Quincy Boulevard between Territorial Road and 109th Avenue as part of a street reconstruction project. Council Member Chris Ford cast the lone dissenting vote. ...

Fire damage is visible at a home on 157th Lane NW in Ramsey after a Sunday, May 3, fire that spread to a grassy area south of the structure. No injuries were reported. Original Article ...

Several cats were rescued and no injuries were reported after a fire damaged a Ramsey home and spread into a large grassy area Sunday, May 3. Firefighters were called to a structure fire on 157th Lane NW, according to the city of Ramsey. The fire extended to a large grassy area south of the structure. The Rum River Fire District said crews extinguished the structure fire and rescued several cats from the building with assistance from the Andover, Nowthen and Oak Grove fire departments. Two firefighters immediately treated the cats after they were removed from the home, according to the district. ...

Federal and state law enforcement searched two Fridley autism centers April 28 as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged fraud involving publicly funded social-service programs. The Fridley locations were Empower Skill Academy and Aspen Associates LLC. The searches were part of a broader investigation involving the Department of Homeland Security and the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth and Families. The Minnesota Department of Children, Youth and Families said in an April 28 statement that the law enforcement actions were the result of state, county and federal agencies working together. ...

Hello. This is Piper the cat writing. I belong to Madeline, the girlfriend of Elliot Steeves, who works for Adams MultiMedia of East Central Minnesota and recently moved in with her. As I stand here for the brief amount of time I have to type on this keyboard, I want to inform you all of one very simple fact: I am utterly beautiful. I am a proper calico — a domestic longhair, most likely — with long, white-spotted fur and fabulous nails. My biscuit-making skills with my paws are so amazing that I can type on a keyboard. ...

The interior of Protein House. Original Article

Protein House in Blaine, near the National Sports Center. Original Article

Presentations like these were displayed at the Oscars symposium at Anoka Ramsey Community College. Original Article