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A network of businesses and organizations around downtown Anoka has sprung up to assemble food and supplies for immigrant families that are fearful to go in public due to recent immigration enforcement activity around the area. Thus far, it has culminated with the appearance of Gov. Tim Walz and first lady Gwen at the First Congregational Church in downtown Anoka. Reverend Chris McArdle credited Parents for Good with starting the effort, saying it had begun around ten days ago with a couple of tubs set out at Avant Garden for people to donate to a mutual aid pantry. ...

Andover’s new Engine 1 was pushed in during a ceremony on the night of Jan. 14, according a Facebook post from the department. The event is a tradition dating back to when firefighters physically pushed horse-drawn engines into their stations. Original Article

The Andover City Council unanimously approved plans and specifications for three forthcoming street projects. Each vote was 4-0, with Council Member Karen Godfrey absent. Public Works Director Dave Berkowitz outlined the first project, a full reconstruction in Creekridge Estates involving Kerry Street, Jonquil Street and 145th Avenue. The roads are rated a three on Andover’s pavement condition scale, which ranges from one to 10. At that rating, reconstruction is necessary to bring streets back to city standards. ...

In the wake of the shooting death of Alex Jeffrey Pretti, who was shot by federal immigration officers on Jan. 24, a large number of people gathered on the streets of downtown Anoka in theevening holding a candlelight vigil in his honor along Main Street. According to reporting by The Associated Press, Pretti, 37, was an intensive care unit nurse who was fatally shot by a U.S. Border Patrol agent during a federal immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis earlier that day. ...

Tim Walz joined volunteers Jan. 23 at a community donation-sorting drive at First Congregational Church in Anoka. “Minnesota is meeting fear and division with decency and generosity,” Walz said in his weekly newsletter. “Across the state, we’re seeing neighbors helping neighbors. Grateful to First Congregational Church in Anoka for inviting me to see that work in action today.” Walz’s visit came as hundreds of businesses closed and thousands of protesters took to the streets in Minneapolis to protest federal immigration enforcement operations. ...

Columbia Heights has issued a statement in response to ongoing immigration enforcement in the city, saying that the council, Mayor Amada Marquez Simula, first responders and city staff had received calls, emails and messages about the presence of immigration officers in the city. “We have seen the trauma,” the statement read. “We have seen the fear in our community’s eyes. We have heard from seniors, students and families. We have met with business owners, school board members and neighbors who have experienced these harms firsthand. We have been present. We have listened. And we believe our community.” ...

A few Blaine residents raised concerns about federal immigration enforcement activity during the Blaine City Council’s Jan. 21 meeting, as city officials clarified the police department’s role and limitations regarding federal law enforcement. Early in the meeting, Police Chief Brian Podany said the department has received inquiries about federal law enforcement activity occurring in the city. Podany said the Blaine Police Department is not involved in federal immigration enforcement and defers all immigration matters to federal authorities. He said federal officers have been present in most or all cities across the Twin Cities metro area, as well as in many cities statewide. ...

Fridley Mayor David Ostwald issued a statement on Facebook addressing recent immigration enforcement activity in the city, saying residents deserve to feel safe and assuring that city services — including policing — will be provided without discrimination. Ostwald said that he had been having conversations with people in the community over the past several weeks, and that they had reinforced that Fridley was a community that cared deeply for one another. ...

The Blaine City Council unanimously approved a conditional use permit allowing Thumos Fitness to open a new location in an industrial area on 91st Avenue Northeast. Thumos’ website describes the business as a place where “faith and fitness are forged.” In addition to fitness equipment and classes, the center includes a smoothie bar and hosts Bible study groups. Community Development Director Sheila Sellman said the site is zoned light industrial, consistent with properties to the north and west. Properties to the east and south are zoned heavy industrial. ...

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. ...