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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.” ...

The Anoka County Sheriff’s Office notified East Bethel that the Minnesota Department of Human Services has ordered the immediate suspension of Nexus Family Healing’s care license. Nexus must discharge all youth in the program within 14 days, according to the order. The facility, located at 900 189th Ave. NE, provides emotional, behavioral and mental health programming for youth ages 10 to 21, according to its website. East Bethel City Administrator Matt Look said the order takes effect May 29, or once all youth have been transitioned to a new provider. He said the reasons for the suspension were significant, though the allegations remain under investigation by DHS. ...

nVent has opened a new production facility in Blaine that will make liquid cooling products for data centers. The 117,000-square-foot facility, located on Naples Street, is expected to employ more than 175 people once fully staffed, according to a company Facebook post. nVent held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the opening. The company said the facility went from empty to fully operational in 100 working days. nVent first announced the Blaine expansion in September 2025, saying it was the second time in two years the company had expanded what it calls its solutions manufacturing operations. The Blaine facility will build new products for data center customers. ...

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. ...

Anoka County has filed court exhibits showing text messages in which DFL House Leader Zach Stephenson, Coon Rapids, told Anoka Mayor Erik Skogquist that Metropolitan Council money for the city’s Rum River Dam project was being taken from Anoka County’s share of metro sales tax revenue and described it as “revenge” tied to the county jail dispute. The text messages were included in exhibits submitted May 13 by Anoka County Administrator Jim Dickinson as part of the county’s legal fight with the Minnesota Department of Transportation over a proposed pedestrian bridge connected to the city’s Rum River Dam project. ...

When St. Francis voted to return to the former Minnesota state flag in January, 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 have offered a wide range of issues with the current flag, including an aesthetic or historical affinity to the former flag. Others said the issue is more about the process used to replace it, arguing that voters should have had a direct say before Minnesota retired a flag that had flown in some form for generations. ...