Buyers need an $8,600 raise to afford the down payment on a home in the Twin Cities according to a new analysis from Zillow. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/4etwWfe
Today’s WCCO Radio morning take at 6:20 with Vineeta Sawkar. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3I7jyRI
On Sunday Take, the significance of the Pride celebration with Sen. Scott Dibble. LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/3I53D6s
Blois
tips/feedback bloisolson@gmail.com
All Fluence Media tip sheets are now available to read and share online at our website, The Daily Agenda:
XEC: Via news release from the Minnesota Wild, VERBATIM: “Minnesota Sports & Entertainment (MSE), which operates Xcel Energy Center, and Grand Casino Mille Lacs and Grand Casino Hinckley, owned by the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, today announced a 14-year naming rights partnership. Beginning September 3, 2025, the home of the Minnesota Wild and more than 150 sporting and entertainment events annually in downtown Saint Paul will be named Grand Casino Arena.”
“As part of this new partnership, all exterior and interior signage will be replaced to identify Grand Casino Arena, including the center ice insignia. All the arena’s signage will be replaced before the start of the 2025-26 NHL regular season.” READ/RENDERINGS: https://fluence-media.co/4ez3yEw
ICE: Via KMSP-TV, VERBATIM: “The Trump administration repeatedly failed to justify its targeting of international students on college campuses across Minnesota earlier this year, according to a FOX 9 Investigators review of federal court records. In those cases, nearly a dozen international students were granted relief after they were detained by ICE or had their student immigration status revoked because the federal government submitted little to ‘no evidence.’ The administration lost in every case reviewed by the FOX 9 Investigators.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/3TjMMPN
TARGET: Via Bloomberg, VERBATIM: “Target Corp. is preparing to introduce new technology to lock and unlock store shelves from a smartphone in a bid to curb theft and improve the shopping experience. Once in place, staff could unlock in-store cases more quickly than having to manually open them with keys, Chief Stores Officer Adrienne Costanzo said during an internal meeting with staff on Thursday. The retailer may also offer the option to employees of its Shipt delivery service, who fulfill online orders, and users of its paid membership program.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4etj30l
PRIDE: Via KARE-TV, VERBATIM: “When Twin Cities Pride needed help, the community was there. The non-profit cut ties with Target earlier this year, after the company rolled back its DEI initiatives. Target was a long-standing sponsor, and without it, there was a big funding gap. Twin Cities Pride started fundraising and reached its goal in a matter of days. In Target’s absence, individuals stepped up, and so did small businesses.” QUOTE: “After the Target thing happened, we had some of our really small community partners reach out and say we want to do more, we want to help,” said Kelsey Alto, director of programming for Twin Cities Pride. “For them, in a time when the economy is down, to go that extra step to help cover the gap means so much to us because we know how much it means to them too.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/4l6Tp4f
FINTECH: Via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Financial technology companies — or fintechs — that primarily offer the popular short-term loan service blossomed during COVID-19, when shopping moved online. The easy-to-qualify-for loans are becoming a mainstay, especially for younger consumers, as large firms have expanded to allow digital transactions at the cash register. ‘It’s definitely a new payment method that’s here to stay,’ said Charlie Youakim, CEO of Minneapolis-based Sezzle, which has widened its buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) options like its competitors such as Klarna, Affirm and Afterpay. Some observers believe the industry has become too wide open and may face a new wave of state regulations.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/44GCzTS
POLITICAL VIOLENCE: Via MinnPost, VERBATIM: “Though political violence researchers do not argue that recent shootings of Minnesota lawmakers suggest we can expect a spike in violence to come, their data does show a pronounced shift in how often government officials — elected and appointed, local, state and federal, Democrat and Republican — are increasingly subject to threats, harassment and violence. There were 1,766 threats and incidents of harassment made toward local officials nationwide from January 2022 through April 2025, the latest month for which BDI data is available. In order to get a better understanding of what that disaggregated data meant, MinnPost has combined all threats into a monthly count and then plotted them over the 39 months of data.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4kmriwP
PREPPERS: Via Star Tribune, VERBATIM: “Troy McKinley was launching the first day of his Minnesota Prepper Expo on June 20 when someone handed him a phone with breaking news. An FBI agent had described alleged political assassin Vance Boelter and his wife as ‘preppers’ in an affidavit, which also detailed his arsenal of weapons and an escape plan for his family. Like most in the movement, McKinley bristled at the implication that Boelter’s actions had anything to do with being a prepper. The term denotes anyone who stockpiles food and supplies in preparation for an emergency, whether it’s a snowstorm or civil war.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4lBXg9n
SOLAR: Via Minnesota Reformer, VERBATIM: “The Legislature passed a bipartisan energy bill during the special session June 9 without two provisions that Minnesota solar power advocates said would have threatened thousands of local jobs and limited consumer choice as the state transitions to 100% carbon-free electricity by 2040. ‘At the end of the day, clean energy goals don’t really mean anything if you don’t have a solar industry to develop projects,’ said Logan O’Grady, executive director of the Minnesota Solar Energy Industries Association. Supporters of the discarded measures to sunset Minnesota’s popular community solar gardens program and reduce utility payments to rural and small-town solar customers said they were needed to keep power affordable during the clean power transition.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4nnoaDH
PRODUCING THE FUELS THAT HELP KEEP MINNESOTA MOVING: Flint Hills Resources, one of the Midwest’s leading producers of transportation fuels is hiring! With openings in IT, accounting, engineering, operations, procurement and asset management, Flint Hills Resources’ goal is to match talented individuals with their passions and interests to truly shine. APPLY TODAY: Flint Hills jobs (SPONSORED: Flint Hills Resources)
DRAINS: Via WCCO-Radio, VERBATIM: “Beware of open storm sewer drains on St. Paul streets. St. Paul Public Works Director Sean Kershaw says vandals have removed more than 150 protective grates since early June.” KERSHAW: "We know that they're not stealing it for scrap, they're not breaking them, but what we're concerned about is incredibly dangerous if you ride your bike into them or walk into them or drive into these open catch basins." LISTEN: https://fluence-media.co/44wXckj
FLIGHTS: Via The Points Guy, VERBATIM: “While Delta Air Lines continues to build award-winning business-class-only lounges, the airline's most exclusive onboard experience still leaves a lot to be desired on the majority of its twin-aisle jets. For instance, if you're departing in Delta One on a long-haul flight from Seattle, odds are you'll end up enjoying a fully enclosed suite with a sliding door. That's because Delta is currently deploying its newest international planes, like the Airbus A330-900neo and the Airbus A350, from Seattle right now. But if you're flying from one of the airline's other hubs, like Atlanta or New York, the odds increase that you'll be seated in a far inferior product on the Boeing 767-300 or older Airbus A330.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/4eyOyXc
MORE: The Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal shows how Delta’s planned upgrades will affect flights from MSP. SEE: https://fluence-media.co/3IoBqri
(DISCLOSURE: Delta is a Fluence client)
CUSTOMS: Via KSTP-TV, VERBATIM: “Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport is launching new technology to help travelers get through customs screenings more quickly. Typically, international travelers wait in a line, hand a passport to a customs officer and answer questions about their travel. Now, instead of walking up to a desk, passengers at MSP can utilize a screen about the size of a tablet for Enhanced Passenger Processing.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/45KjrFH
FRESH15: The latest season of Fresh15 includes interviews with new Minnesota House members. So far, five new members have shared their goals, background and fun facts before they take office in a historic session this January.
Rep. Kari Rehrauer
Rep. Wayne Johnson
Rep. Julie Greene
Rep. Keith Allen
Rep. Peter Johnson
Follow on your favorite podcast platform, or at www.TheDailyAgenda.com/Podcasts. (SPONSORED: Minnesota Telecom Alliance)
BUFFALO: Via KARE-TV, VERBATIM: “The City of Buffalo put out a public service announcement on Sunday, asking its residents to use water sparingly over the next 24 hours due to the city's wastewater collection system experiencing ‘very high flows.’ To help manage the system, the city is asking residents to limit laundry, dishwashing and other heavy water use for the time being.” WATCH: https://fluence-media.co/44zbml4
PUNK: Via MPR, VERBATIM: “‘It’s the people, not the place,’ said the caption laid over photos on Instagram eulogizing a south Minneapolis punk house that for at least two decades has been known as Disgraceland. An era ended when the owner announced plans to sell the home and the last punks moved out on April 30. Over the years, it has hosted live music, sheltered touring bands, and housed countless individuals within the local DIY and punk communities. The exact timelines and quantities of shows, housemates and pets are blurred by time, cheap beer and a lack of formal documentation, but the lore of the house in the Phillips neighborhood precedes even its final name.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3GoM0xW
SHAKOPEE: Via Minnesota Monthly, VERBATIM: “There’s a new buzz in Shakopee, and you can hear it from the thundering hooves at Canterbury Park to the clink of cocktail glasses on Boardwalk Kitchen & Bar’s sprawling patio. This brand-new dining and entertainment destination opened June 21, but judging by the crowd, the city’s already claiming it as its own.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3Tim1v6
ST PAUL: Via Sahan Journal, VERBATIM: “Thousands flocked to Hmong International Freedom Festival in St. Paul on Saturday, undeterred by rain, heat or humidity. The two-day event at Como Park, one of the largest Hmong gatherings in the country, had a special resonance this year, the 50th anniversary of the Hmong arrival in the United States.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3Go9aEG
NEXT WEEK: Target Circle Week runs July 6-12. MORE: https://fluence-media.co/44vWQKR
TOMORROW: From Sports Take’s Howard Sinker:
LYNX VS. CAITLIN CLARK: Want to go see Lynx vs. Indiana Fever on Tuesday night? It’s not cheap, especially to sit in the 100 level at Target Center. Tickets are still available for $68/each, including fees, in the upper half of the 200 level. Downstairs? You’re almost certainly into triple-figures, at a minimum, and big money to be closer to the floor. As of 9 a.m. Monday, you could get two in Section 104, Row G for $160 each (or two in Row W of the section for $247 each). Season-ticket holders in Sec. 104, Row T, paid the regular rate of $45 each. Sit by the Fever bench? That’s a four-figure seat. As in $1,850 each for a pair behind the Fever bench. Prices vary widely and wildly . . . and some people are thinking, “Well, if you want to pay that much, have at it.” TICKETS: https://fluence-media.co/3TMJjtc
CLARK’S STATUS: Via ESPN. It’s uncertain. She’s missed the last two games with a groin injury. VERBATIM: "Doing everything I can to put myself in position to play the next game. That's always my goal." KEEP IN MIND: The Commissioner’s Cup final doesn’t count in the standings, with the winning team splitting a $500,000 pool instead. The Lynx won it last year. https://fluence-media.co/44cFO5y
COACH FEUD: Via the latest Sports Take. Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve and USA Today’s columnist Christine Brennan, author of an upcoming book about Clark, are feuding about how Reeve treated Clark in the build-up to last year’s Olympics. Sports Take: https://fluence-media.co/40rUAmq
VIEWS: Via Eater, VERBATIM: “What Minneapolis and St. Paul lack in hills and mountains, they make up for in other gorgeous vantage points: bluffs above the Mississippi River, downtown terraces, and lush, Secret Garden-style patios . . . Here are 13 restaurants with excellent views in Minneapolis and St. Paul.” LIST/MAP: https://fluence-media.co/3GroaNN
FORUM: If you’re interested in having the Fluence Forum host a topic, please contact Blois Olson at bloisolson@gmail.com
TACO BELL: Via Axios, VERBATIM: “Centro Restaurant Group is taking a ‘Live Más’ approach to its spin on Taco Bell's Crunchwrap, with fresh plans for its first brick-and-mortar outpost focused on the fan favorite. The big picture: Taco Bell's top-selling menu item, which the chain debuted 20 years ago last week, has become an ‘unlikely muse’ — and a moneymaker — for chefs across the country, the New York Times reports. The local angle: The success of Centro's own playful take on the layered hand-held tortilla wraps inspired owners to create Hippo Pockets, a stand-alone ghost kitchen and pop-up dedicated to serving the ‘flying saucers of crunch.’” READ: https://fluence-media.co/46k0KIX
PEACE: Via Sahan Journal, VERBATIM: “Last week, Sahan Journal lost one of our strongest champions, Nancy Cassutt. An accomplished newsroom leader, Cassutt served in senior roles at WCCO-TV News, Minnesota Public Radio News, and Marketplace. She died of glioblastoma at age 64.” READ: https://fluence-media.co/3ZSEaTZ
BDAYS: Attorney Scott Benson, MPR’s Dana Ferguson, DFL insider Sami Banat, band leader Brian Glodek
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