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The Blaine City Council unanimously approved an ordinance June 1 allowing lawful gambling organizations to operate at up to five locations in the city. The change increases the previous limit from four locations per organization. City Clerk Cathy Sorensen said the request came from Blaine Youth Hockey. As part of the ordinance change, the council also directed staff to remove a waiver provision, leaving applicants limited to Blaine’s trade area. That area includes Circle Pines, Coon Rapids, Ham Lake, Lexington, Lino Lakes, Mounds View, Shoreview and Spring Lake Park. ...

Columbia Heights’s police and fire departments wrote on Facebook on May 27 that they rescued a vehicle from the water near a Silver Lake boat launch on Saturday, May 23. The fire department deployed resources on the water on arrival while the police, Allina EMS, dispatchers, towing services and additional support agencies worked together to manage the incident. The incident reportedly involved an individual experiencing a crisis. Original Article

The city of Oak Grove is asking the Minnesota Supreme Court to intervene in a dispute over whether the city can use paper voting rosters in the 2026 general election. The city filed a petition May 28 challenging what it says are efforts by Secretary of State Steve Simon and Anoka County election officials to prevent the city from using paper rosters. According to a press release from the Upper Midwest Law Center, the petition asks the court to rule that Oak Grove has the authority under state law to use paper voter rosters. ...

Blaine held a Memorial Day service at Veterans Memorial Park outside City Hall on Monday, May 25. The ceremony was hosted with support from the nonprofit that maintains the park and included a special tribute to Richard Childress, a 1985 Blaine High School graduate who died in 1989 while serving in the Navy, according to the city’s website. Minnesota National Guard Brig. Gen. Don Kerr delivered a special address to the crowd. Mayor Tim Sanders also spoke during the ceremony. ...

The Blaine City Council May 18 unanimously approved two drainage and utility easement vacations at Northtown Mall in anticipation of a future development at the site. The vacations were petitioned for by Russel Taylor of Taylor Properties. The first involves easements on Lot 2, Block 1, Prime North Addition, and Lot 2, Block 1, Glimcher Northtown Mall Second Addition. The second involves Lot 2, Block 1, Prime North Addition. Director of Engineering Daniel Schluender said the areas are being replatted and the easements are no longer necessary. ...

Oak Grove is moving ahead with a new city hall and fire station after years of discussion about fire department space needs and maintenance issues at the current City Hall. Mayor Weston Rolf said the project was not one city officials took lightly. “It was something that we just needed to do,” Rolf said. Rolf said discussions about a new fire station date back to at least 2019, when he was serving on the City Council. Since then, he said, Oak Grove has continued to grow, increasing the need for city services, staff space and space for groups that contract with the city. ...

CMK Properties announced on Facebook that Ham Lake is expected to get a new Tractor Supply Company store by the end of the year. The 21,930-square-foot prototype store would be the company’s 11th development for the chain.CMK described the project as part of its work developing specialty retail properties in communities across the country. Construction is slated to begin in May, according to CMK Properties. Original Article

BALDWIN — Baldwin city officials are standing by their decision to fly the former Minnesota state flag, even as the issue continues to spark debate across the state. The Baldwin City Council initially voted in March to fly the former flag. “The state flag is not only a symbol of our state, but also of our history and contains historical information that is part of the rich history of our state,” the city’s resolution states. ...

The Blaine City Council unanimously approved a bid from North Pine Aggregate for the Quincy Area street reconstruction project at its May 18 meeting. The approval includes costs for speed humps requested by residents in the area, though the speed hump item is scheduled for formal consideration June 1. Engineering Director Dan Schluender said the project covers streets in and around 106th Avenue NE, Quincy Boulevard NE and the Quincy and Monroe neighborhood. It also includes the Quincy Park parking lot, just east of Quincy Boulevard. ...

The city of East Bethel will receive $3 million in federal funding and $3 million in state funding for a project that includes a new treatment plant, a new water tower and future water and sewer hookups to East Bethel and Cedar Creek elementary schools. Look said the city had been pursuing $10.5 million to fund new sewer and water connections for the schools. “You’ve heard me talk about opium — other people’s money — many times,” Look said. “I believe in the ask-not, get-not. And so we have gone to multiple sources to try to get these dollars to accomplish this project.” ...