DRONES & AI
A new Chick-fil-A opens in Mankato tomorrow:
MORE INFO: https://fluence-media.co/4x2odZQ
A majority of Americans say they’re seeing ads that appear to have been made using AI – nearly half think poorly of the businesses in those ads. GALLUP: https://fluence-media.co/4zixkHk
Amazon is expanding its drone delivery service – not here yet, the closest markets are Kansas City and Chicago. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/4zm8Qx7
Three people are suspected of stealing items from cemeteries in eight states – including Minnesota. READ: https://fluence-media.co/4cRuVtx
Blois
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Today’s WCCO Radio morning take at 6:20 with Vineeta Sawkar. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4wCKb4M
Sunday Take featured a recap of the Minnesota primary, a look at Wisconsin’s primary with political analyst Bill McCoshen and a talk with MN Chamber CEO Doug Loon about Minnesota’s economy. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3SER8Ei
BIG ISSUES & BIG BUSINESS
TODAY: Via WCCO-Radio, VERBATIM: “There’s a hearing Wednesday on an injunction to try to stop an alleged gang fight from taking place at the Minnesota State Fair. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and Ramsey County Attorney John Choi filed the lawsuits in an effort to prevent members of two rival gangs from taking part in a fight.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45wNE9U
LOGGING: Via Duluth News Tribune, VERBATIM: “The Trump administration will move forward with its plan to reopen 44 million acres of national forest land throughout the country to logging, including 62,000 acres of the Superior National Forest, much of it adjacent — but all of it outside — the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said Tuesday, Aug. 18, that the U.S. Forest Service filed its proposed rule to rescind ‘in its entirety’ the 2001 rule that bars new roads and logging in certain areas of national forests. The rescission of the rule does not mandate timber cutting or road construction in these areas, leaving that up to local national forest managers, according to the USDA.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ij5k05
FLOCK CAMS: Via Sahan Journal, VERBATIM: “The Anoka County Sheriff’s Office is throwing its support behind Flock cameras as the company faces backlash across Minnesota and the country, prompting widespread vandalism and broken relationships with other agencies. Anoka County Sheriff Brad Wise signed a contract with Flock on June 30 that’s under the threshold that requires approval from the Anoka County Board of Commissioners. Some Anoka residents say the reduced cost is an intentional maneuver by the sheriff to avoid gathering public input.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3Sj4s0T
TARGET: Via The Wall Street Journal, more details on the company’s earnings first reported in morning take. VERBATIM: “On the heels of a positive quarter, the company said it now expects sales growth of about 5% this fiscal year, raising its guidance for the second time this year. Target also bumped up its full-year earnings outlook to a range of $9.90 to $10.90 a share, which includes a benefit of $1.65 from tariff refunds in the second quarter. The company previously guided for earnings of $7.50 to $8.50 a share. The updated forecast comes as Target continues to work through its turnaround strategy under Chief Executive Michael Fiddelke, who took the helm earlier this year.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/46eM1xG
WHY: Via Associated Press, VERBATIM: “Target reported its second straight quarter of comparable sales gains on Wednesday, saying that a merchandising overhaul under the retailer’s new CEO is attracting more customers and boosting sales throughout its stores. The retailer also benefited from a tariff refund of $994 million after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled this year that the Trump administration had overstepped its authority when the tariffs were implemented.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/468eeX1
TODAY: Via Axios, VERBATIM: “The outdoor recreation industry’s biggest annual event lands in Minneapolis on Wednesday. Why it matters: Luring the Outdoor Retailer trade show was a major coup for Minnesota, giving its nearly $14 billion outdoor recreation industry a chance to mingle with industry titans on their home turf.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4qqJQAF
BROADBAND: Comcast is rewriting the broadband playbook in the Twin Cities. From neighborhood networks to next-gen tech, we’re delivering community-first internet connectivity with no contracts, no surprises. The new Xfinity package means unlimited data, blazing-fast, reliable speeds and a 5-year price guarantee, plus free mobile for a year. It’s not the old Comcast — it’s a bold new era of connection. Let’s power the future, together. LEARN MORE: https://fluence-media.co/Comcast2025-1 (SPONSORED: Comcast)
THE LOCALS
CHASKA: Via WCCO-Radio, VERBATIM: “Chaska is the latest community that will allow visitors to wander around with a drink during community gatherings. The City Council has approved a measure supported by local business owners in a defined area of downtown starting in September.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4qoR9c7
PINE ISLAND: Via KTTC-TV, VERBATIM: “Google will host a community celebration Wednesday for its proposed data center project in Pine Island. Google is expected to announce the project’s ‘Panther Program’ and other initiatives benefiting the Pine Island School District with a projected amount of $24 million.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4bXTmFm
MINNEAPOLIS: Via MinnPost, VERBATIM: “Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey’s $2.3 billion budget proposal has made headlines for a handful of items, like reduced parks funding and an effort to get a handle on very expensive police overtime. But one line from his August 12 budget address piqued my interest more than others: ‘We will work to allow for construction of four-unit buildings,’ Frey said while talking about his administration’s efforts on affordable housing. ‘Three units is often cost-prohibitive, four units may not be – and it houses another family.’ The fourplex was a hot topic back in 2018 as the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan neared approval.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3SDeVVc
NEW ULM: Via MPR, VERBATIM: “The southern Minnesota city of New Ulm wants to grow, and people seem to want to move there. But there’s not enough affordable housing, forcing potential residents to move elsewhere. The potential solution to this affordable housing crunch is less restrictive zoning, and saying “yes” to more alternative styles of housing projects.” LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/4hDPRYp
RELATED: New Minnesota housing market numbers via morning take. ICYMI: https://fluence-media.co/4zsBOv9
CLEAN | RELIABLE | AFFORDABLE: Via Xcel Energy, VERBATIM: “We’re powering the Upper Midwest with clean, reliable, and affordable nuclear energy. For more than 50 years, our Prairie Island Nuclear Plant, located near Red Wing, MN, has been a workhorse of reliable, carbon-free energy. With two pressurized water reactors producing about 1,100 megawatts, Prairie Island generates enough electricity to power 1.5 million homes across the Upper Midwest. Unlike sources that depend on weather, nuclear energy delivers 24/7 reliability—providing the power we need today while protecting the environment for tomorrow.” LEARN MORE: https://fluence-media.co/4oCHdK9 (SPONSORED: Xcel Energy)
DEVELOPING STORIES
TPS: Via Sahan Journal, VERBATIM: “An estimated 1,200 Minnesotans from Myanmar lost temporary protected immigration status on Aug. 7 when a federal judge sided with the Trump administration’s move to end the program. The judicial rule ends temporary protected status (TPS) for roughly 4,000 people from Myanmar, also known as Burma, in the United States. Minnesota has a sizable community from Myanmar, mostly members of the Karen ethnic group.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gIV92P
ICE FLIGHTS: Via Minnesota Reformer, VERBATIM: “Nick Benson watched from the top floor of an airport parking garage, two cameras with zoom lenses trained on the plane, recording video as 14 men and two women boarded the flight in chains. One of the women struggled up the stairs, leaning on a worker in a bright yellow vest for support. This was the 147th ‘ICE Air’ flight — planes shipping detainees on behalf of Immigration and Customs Enforcement — Benson had observed since he began tracking deportations in November. The database he built late last year has provided some of the most accurate, timely information to the concerned public during Operation Metro Surge, which the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has described as the largest immigration enforcement operation in U.S. history.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4zsqsHk
FLETCHER’S BENCH: Via MPR, VERBATIM: “Tuesday evening, a south Minneapolis neighborhood gathered around a bench to honor the late, avid fisherman that once made a daily pilgrimage to its adjacent lake. 8-year-old Fletcher Merkel — one of two children killed in the Annunciation Catholic Church and School mass shooting nearly a year ago — loved living near Grass Lake, according to family.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/45wKumy
HABITAT RESTORATION: Flint Hills Resources welcomes community volunteers to join Friends of the Mississippi River, Great River Greening and Flint Hills employees on October 3 for the 26th annual community restoration event at the Pine Bend Bluffs in Inver Grove Heights, a critical habitat along the Mississippi River for migrating songbirds, waterfowl and shorebirds, as well as pollinators and residential wildlife. Thanks to the tireless work of many volunteers, the Pine Bend Bluffs became the first-ever Tandem Global WHC gold-certified site in the Twin Cities in 2023.
LEARN MORE: Community partnerships (SPONSORED: Flint Hills Resources Pine Bend refinery)
COMMERCE
ICE CREAM: Via Bring Me The News, VERBATIM: “As the end of summer looms, a Twin Cities ice cream shop has announced that this will be its final season of service. Wonders Ice Cream at 298 University Ave. W in St. Paul will close its doors on Sept. 13. The shop specializes in the social media-ready rolled ice cream that gets artfully placed in a bowl and covered with toppings.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4qtL26j
BOOK: Via MinnPost, VERBATIM: “A small, nonprofit publisher in Minnesota is celebrating a first: one of its books has made the longlist for the Booker Prize, a prestigious British literary award. Coffee House Press, based in Northeast Minneapolis, published Makenna Goodman’s ‘Helen of Nowhere’ in September 2025, before it was picked up by British publisher Fitzcarraldo Editions. Judges praised it as ‘philosophically, politically and spiritually adventurous.’” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4gFeIdd
BWCAW: Via WCCO-TV, VERBATIM: “Last month, wildfires closed the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness for a couple weeks. Now, a longtime canoe outfitter in the area is looking to sell. Williams and Hall Outfitters in Ely has been in business for 33 years.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3RSz0Xq
NOG: Via Minnetonka-based NOG, VERBATIM: “Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NYSE: NOG) today announced that it intends to offer, subject to market and other conditions, $500 million in aggregate principal amount of senior notes due 2034 in a private offering to eligible purchasers under Rule 144A and Regulation S of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the offering to repay a portion of the outstanding borrowings under its revolving credit facility and the remainder, if any, for general corporate purposes.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3UGwGU8
CONCERT TIX: Via Bring Me The News, VERBATIM: “Between the antitrust case settled with Live Nation and Ticketmaster, the so-called blue dot fever, and broad economic uncertainty, high ticket prices have continued to be a persistent conversation in the music world. It’s not clear that any single factor is the cause, but high prices are not currently an issue for My Chemical Romance’s upcoming Target Field gig on Monday, Aug. 24. With less than a week to go before showtime, Bring Me The News has found tickets for as little as $12, including fees.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4hDAzmr
HIGHER ED: Via MPR, VERBATIM: “After months of searching to fill the role of president at Leech Lake Tribal College, school leadership announced in June that Erin Stresow would take on the role. Leech Lake Tribal College is a two-year institution that offers transfer, career and technical degrees. Its mission is to provide higher education grounded in Anishinaabe values and culture. The school is in Cass Lake within the boundaries of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe reservation in northern Minnesota. An investiture ceremony was held on Monday evening to formally celebrate Stresow taking over the position.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4xSTRJq
WHAT’S NEXT?
NEXT MONTH: Via Minneapolis-based Regis, VERBATIM: “Regis Corporation (NasdaqGM:RGS), a leader in the haircare industry, will issue financial results for the fourth fiscal quarter and full year ended June 30, 2026, before the market opens on September 1, 2026.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4wGW5L1
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
DEBUT ALBUM: Via MplsStPaul, VERBATIM: “Minneapolis-based band Porch Light has taken the internet by storm over the last two years, releasing two EPs and a slew of singles. Earlier this summer, they released two singles, ‘Arctic’ and ‘Under,’ teasing an upcoming album. Now, they’re announcing their debut album Hush, recorded at Cannon Falls’s Pachyderm Studios (where Nirvana recorded In Utero).” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4ci22GX
BDAYS: Entrepreneur Scott Burns, health care veteran Ghita Worcester, Farmers Union leader Gary Wertish, House DFL comms leader Ted Modrich, organizer Eric Haugee
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