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Fridley’s school district and city officials remain divided over what authority the city has — and how much it should exercise — regarding the presence of federal immigration enforcement agents. The dispute centers on the Fridley Police Department’s 2017 immigration statement, which says the department will assist federal law enforcement “when called upon.” Jake Karnopp, chair of the Fridley School Board, said at the Jan. 26 meeting that the city had declined to apply federal and constitutional laws restricting civil immigration enforcement in school settings and had declined to collaborate with the district to keep children safe amid ongoing Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity. ...

The Fridley City Council approved a temporary liquor permit for the Fridley Lions Club for its annual Winter Warm Up event on a 3-0 vote at the Feb. 9 meeting. Mayor David Ostwald recused himself from the vote because his wife, Steph Ostwald, currently serves as president of the Fridley Lions Club. Council Member Ryan Evanson was absent. City Clerk Melissa Moore told the council the Winter Warm Up is an annual event hosted by the Lions at Banquets of Minnesota on Feb. 27 and will include sampling of alcoholic beverages. ...

The East Bethel City Council on Feb. 9 unanimously approved a conditional use permit allowing Happy Earth Made Products to operate a cannabis microbusiness focused on cultivation and production. Interim Community Development Director Kendra Lindahl presented the item, stating the property is zoned Light Industrial and guided for that use. Cannabis microbusinesses are permitted as a conditional use in the district. The requested endorsements are for cultivation and production, not retail sales. ...

2 wounded in Columbia Heights restaurant shooting On Feb. 14 at 8:45 p.m., the Columbia Heights Police Department responded to a report of a shooting at New York Gyro in Columbia Heights. Authorities said a male suspect fired multiple shots inside the restaurant before fleeing, according to a Feb. 15 press release from the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office. A man and a teenage boy were transported by others to a local hospital. Both were reported in stable condition. ...

The St. Francis City Council voted Jan. 20 to formalize a resolution directing the city to fly Minnesota’s 1957 state flag rather than the current official flag flown at the Minnesota State Capitol. The resolution was approved 5-0 and states the city’s opposition to flying the current state flag. The vote followed earlier council discussion in which Mayor Mark Vogel described the move as a statement opposing actions taken at the state level in adopting the new flag, which was chosen through a legislative redesign process and made the official state flag in 2024. ...

Columbia Heights resident Ed Higgins was taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents Feb. 5 and transported to the Whipple Federal Building before being released later that evening. In a written statement posted Feb. 5, Higgins said he was driving through Sunnyside Mobile Home Park at approximately 2 p.m. when he saw three vehicles he believed belonged to ICE agents. He said he identified the vehicles based on what he described as prior confirmations from community members over the previous two weeks and sounded his horn to alert residents. ...

Columbia Heights said in a Facebook post that Xcel Energy is implementing temporary protections for customers affected by recent events. According to the post, the company extended a suspension of service disconnections to all seven metro-area counties through the end of February, effective Feb. 5. Customers do not need to contact the company to receive disconnection protection, but bills will continue to accrue during the suspension. The post stated that customers seeking flexible payment arrangements or energy assistance can call 800-895-4999. ...

At the Feb. 9 meeting, Fridley residents continued to urge the council to take action in response to ongoing immigration enforcement in the city. Concerns included the public safety department’s use of Flock cameras and requests that the council declare Fridley a sanctuary city, adopt an ordinance restricting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from operating on city-owned property and follow steps taken by neighboring suburbs. Public Safety Director Ryan George reiterated his earlier statement on the department’s immigration policy and said Fridley was not sending any Flock camera data to the federal government. ...

The Columbia Heights City Council unanimously approved a resolution Feb. 9 calling for an end to nationwide surges by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection and urges Congress to withhold additional funding for the Department of Homeland Security without what it describes as stronger oversight and enforcement limits. Council Member Rachel James read the resolution aloud as written. It states that the administration of President Donald Trump is carrying out an “assault on communities in the name of immigration enforcement” that is “eroding our constitutional rights and endangering residents.” ...

Sam Darnold won the Super Bowl after the Vikings let him go. At this revelation, Elliot Steeves—watching the Big Game on his phone after missing it live due to a flight back from Puerto Vallarta, where he had been vacationing amid beaches and the Lindo Mar resort—proceeded to hurl a giant bottle of Mexican tequila directly at the screen, damaging it in true football-fan fashion. Darnold went from slinging passes to Justin Jefferson to hoisting a Lombardi Trophy with Mike Macdonald’s Dark Side defense—an annihilator of entire galaxies—alongside Kenneth Walker III and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who, for the record, is not as good as Justin Jefferson. All of this happened while Kevin O’Connell, now alleged rather than proven quarterback whisperer, turned to the impish gremlin known as Nine the Terrible to guide him to the classic 9-8 Minnesota Mediocre record, followed by a general manager getting fired for being really, really bad at drafting players not named Dallas Turner or Jordan Addison. ...