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Paperback Exchange to reopen 2 years after devastating flood

The 50-year-old bookstore was destroyed in 2025 after a city water main break.

News

A long-running south Minneapolis bookstore destroyed by a city <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="water main break" data-vars-click-url="https://www.southwestvoices.news/stories/paperback-exchange-bookstore-a-loss-for-now,141103" data-vars-content-id="a08f6c77-6664-4e99-b0cd-1ec806f9ed20" data-vars-headline="Paperback Exchange to reopen 2 years after devastating flood" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.southwestvoices.news/stories/paperback-exchange-bookstore-a-loss-for-now,141103" target="_blank">water main break</a> last year has finally found a new home — literally.Driving the news: Paperback Exchange will reopen in a converted single-family house near its original location next spring.<ul><li>The shop, which opened at 50th and Penn in 1975, boasted more than 150,000 titles before a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="burst pipe flooded" data-vars-click-url="https://www.startribune.com/after-dark-chapter-flooded-minneapolis-bookstore-works-to-turn-page/601227409?utm_source=gift" data-vars-content-id="a08f6c77-6664-4e99-b0cd-1ec806f9ed20" data-vars-headline="Paperback Exchange to reopen 2 years after devastating flood" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.startribune.com/after-dark-chapter-flooded-minneapolis-bookstore-works-to-turn-page/601227409?utm_source=gift" target="_blank">burst pipe flooded</a> its building in February 2025.</li></ul>

Gang task force proposal gains traction and stirs anxiety

Police in multiple suburbs have tied a recent string of gun violence to Somali American gangs.

Representatives of around 40 Twin Cities law enforcement agencies will meet with state officials this week to discuss growing calls for a regional police response to gang violence.Why it matters: Residents and city leaders are clamoring for solutions after police in multiple Twin Cities suburbs tied an alarming string of gun violence to Somali American gangs.

Hourcar shutting down car sharing service

The nonprofit faced a $1.1 million deficit and couldn't crawl out

Car-sharing service Hourcar is <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="shutting down" data-vars-click-url="https://hourcar.org/news/sunset" data-vars-content-id="55865822-0f80-4eab-a70e-510ca95f2817" data-vars-headline="Hourcar shutting down car sharing service" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://hourcar.org/news/sunset" target="_blank">shutting down</a> on Oct. 15 after a 20-year run in the Twin Cities. Why it matters: Hourcar allowed people to ditch their own vehicle in favor of a low-cost alternative, but a financial crunch prompted the nonprofit&#x27;s board of directors to end the service.

Rising diesel prices strain Minnesota school bus budgets

Some districts are cutting bus routes as soaring diesel costs add to existing financial pressures.

Education

Rising fuel prices are squeezing already cash-strapped Minnesota school districts. Why it matters: Some districts are consolidating or reducing routes to cut costs, disrupting student and family routines.

Map: Explore Minneapolis' school closure plans

Axios' interactive map visualizes why the district pegged certain schools for closure — and why that plan is drawing pushback.

Minneapolis school board members will consider Tuesday whether to pause a controversial plan to close or merge at least 14 schools next year.Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="After years of cutbacks" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2026/09/15/minneapolis-options-school-closures" data-vars-content-id="1e6506f5-54a3-4c48-abca-0c3ddef244d3" data-vars-headline="Map: Explore Minneapolis&#x27; school closure plans" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2026/09/15/minneapolis-options-school-closures" target="_self">After years of cutbacks</a>, Minneapolis Public Schools officials say they need to consolidate resources on fewer campuses to build attractive programs and replenish the district&#x27;s enrollment pipeline.<ul><li>But many critics argue the closures would do the opposite: destabilize the district and send more parents <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="fleeing for charter schools or other districts" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2025/05/29/twin-cities-open-enrollment-school-shift" data-vars-content-id="1e6506f5-54a3-4c48-abca-0c3ddef244d3" data-vars-headline="Map: Explore Minneapolis&#x27; school closure plans" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2025/05/29/twin-cities-open-enrollment-school-shift" target="_self">fleeing for charter schools or other districts</a>.</li></ul>

Minnesota colleges earn F for campus free speech 

The U and Macalester earned F grades, while Carleton received a D- in FIRE's latest rankings.

Top Minnesota colleges are largely failing to create a healthy free speech climate on campus, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="according to a new national ranking" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2026/09/10/free-speech-collge-student-censorship" data-vars-content-id="bde5ea0e-6ca0-4567-acc5-e711354c7a94" data-vars-headline="Minnesota colleges earn F for campus free speech " data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2026/09/10/free-speech-collge-student-censorship" target="_self">according to a new national ranking</a>.State of speech: Colleges and universities nationwide earned an average D- in <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="this year&#x27;s report" data-vars-click-url="https://www.fire.org/sites/default/files/2026/09/2027%20College%20Free%20Speech%20Rankings%20Report_Final.pdf" data-vars-content-id="bde5ea0e-6ca0-4567-acc5-e711354c7a94" data-vars-headline="Minnesota colleges earn F for campus free speech " data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.fire.org/sites/default/files/2026/09/2027%20College%20Free%20Speech%20Rankings%20Report_Final.pdf" target="_blank">this year&#x27;s report</a> from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE).<ul><li><a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="In Minnesota" data-vars-click-url="https://rankings.fire.org/state/minnesota?demo=all&amp;year=2026" data-vars-content-id="bde5ea0e-6ca0-4567-acc5-e711354c7a94" data-vars-headline="Minnesota colleges earn F for campus free speech " data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://rankings.fire.org/state/minnesota?demo=all&amp;year=2026" target="_blank">In Minnesota</a>, the average grade was an F.</li></ul>

MPS could face school closures under new options

The district is facing budget problems and declining enrollment, which has prompted officials to explore school closures

Minneapolis Public Schools leaders will present three options Tuesday night for dealing with ongoing <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="financial problems" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/04/01/minneapolis-schools-budget-cuts-2025" data-vars-content-id="6445721b-93ee-482e-9d01-a4aac4cac8ee" data-vars-headline="MPS could face school closures under new options" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/04/01/minneapolis-schools-budget-cuts-2025" target="_self">financial problems</a>, and officials have signaled that school closures will be on the table. Why it matters: Parent anxiety has been building for years as declining enrollment has prompted talk of closures to stave off cuts to other programs and services. <ul><li>Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams noted in a video message to parents that some of the options will be &quot;universally celebrated, and others … may cause trepidation.&quot;</li></ul>

Scoop: University of Minnesota to remove recently installed Flock camera on the West Bank

The walk back is the latest example of local officials reconsidering their use of the technology.

The University of Minnesota plans to remove a Flock camera recently installed in Minneapolis&#x27; West Bank neighborhood following pushback from a DFL lawmaker and community members, Axios has learned.The big picture: The reversal is the latest example of growing local backlash against automated license plate readers (ALPR) over privacy and surveillance concerns.

Minnesota school funding amendment faces November vote

Minnesotans will decide this November whether to send more cash from a 168-year-old trust to schools across the state. Why it matters: Supporters of the constitutional amendment, placed on the ballot with broad bipartisan support, say the proposal increases school funding without raising taxes.

Minnesota education rankings are slipping

The latest Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count rankings raise concerns about K-12 students' post-pandemic recovery.

Minnesota kids are still some of the healthiest and best cared for in the nation — but in school, they haven&#x27;t kept pace with their peers since the pandemic, according to a new Annie E. Casey Foundation report.Why it matters: The foundation&#x27;s &quot;Kids Count&quot; index is among the most widely cited comprehensive measures of children&#x27;s economic, educational, health and social wellbeing.

AI fears push Twin Cities students to rethink career paths

Colleges are responding with new ways to serve up skills.

Gabrielle spent her first year at a Twin Cities community college as an English major, figuring her passion for proofreading friends&#x27; papers would translate well to an editing career. While she &quot;absolutely loved&quot; the subject, a hard-to-shake concern had her questioning her choice.<ul><li>&quot;I was terrified that I&#x27;d either never find a job or lose my job due to AI,&quot; she tells Axios. </li></ul>

ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota

The crackdown is exacerbating shortages in an already-understaffed industry.

The federal immigration crackdown is deepening staffing shortages at Twin Cities <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="child care centers" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/11/01/st-paul-child-care-ballot-measure-provider-capacity" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/11/01/st-paul-child-care-ballot-measure-provider-capacity" target="_self">child care centers</a>, forcing some providers to cut hours or close classrooms as immigrant workers stay home out of fear.Why it matters: The growing shortages in Minnesota&#x27;s <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="already understaffed child" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2025/12/10/child-care-shortage-improves-but-expensive" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2025/12/10/child-care-shortage-improves-but-expensive" target="_self">already understaffed child</a> care industry could force some parents to leave the workforce to care for their kids, a recent national report suggests.The latest: The anxieties stem from multiple reports of parents and staff encountering federal agents around child care centers in recent weeks.<ul><li>ICE officers removed a teacher from her car just outside the Minneapolis location of Jardin Spanish Immersion Academy, where she was about to begin work, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="the Star Tribune reported" data-vars-click-url="https://www.startribune.com/minnesota-daycares-say-ice-is-targeting-its-workers/601560204" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.startribune.com/minnesota-daycares-say-ice-is-targeting-its-workers/601560204" target="_blank">the Star Tribune reported</a>.</li><li>One anonymous Spanish immersion child care center <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="told KARE11" data-vars-click-url="https://www.kare11.com/article/news/politics/immigration-news/local-child-care-centers-report-ice-detentions-federal-visits/89-2dc1ce9e-8b8a-4964-81c0-b52715e98b8e" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.kare11.com/article/news/politics/immigration-news/local-child-care-centers-report-ice-detentions-federal-visits/89-2dc1ce9e-8b8a-4964-81c0-b52715e98b8e" target="_blank">told KARE11</a> that agents detained multiple workers who had legal work authorization in the center&#x27;s parking lot.</li><li>The leader of another unidentified center <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="told KSTP" data-vars-click-url="https://kstp.com/kstp-news/top-news/spanish-immersion-schools-feeling-impact-of-immigration-enforcement/" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://kstp.com/kstp-news/top-news/spanish-immersion-schools-feeling-impact-of-immigration-enforcement/" target="_blank">told KSTP</a> that &quot;nearly half of her staff has stopped coming to work.&quot;</li></ul>What they&#x27;re saying: Dawn Uribe, who owns four Mis Amigos Preschool locations in the Twin Cities, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="told MPR News" data-vars-click-url="https://www.mprnews.org/episode/2026/01/14/st-paul-child-care-centers-ask-for-city-support-amid-safety-concerns" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.mprnews.org/episode/2026/01/14/st-paul-child-care-centers-ask-for-city-support-amid-safety-concerns" target="_blank">told MPR News</a> she set up a food pantry for staff who aren&#x27;t working.<ul><li>&quot;Our entire admin team has been in classrooms covering breaks,&quot; so her centers don&#x27;t fall below their required staff ratios. &quot;If we don&#x27;t have enough staff, we have to close classrooms,&quot; Uribe told MPR.</li></ul>The other side: In a statement, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin defended federal agents&#x27; work and reiterated the claim that they&#x27;re arresting criminals.<ul><li>&quot;A HUGE victory for public safety,&quot; McLaughlin said.</li></ul>The big picture: In Minnesota, 14% of the early education workforce was<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text=" born outside the U.S." data-vars-click-url="https://cscce.berkeley.edu/publications/blog/nearly-half-a-million-early-childhood-educators-are-immigrants/" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://cscce.berkeley.edu/publications/blog/nearly-half-a-million-early-childhood-educators-are-immigrants/" target="_blank"> born outside the U.S.</a> — and data analyzed by the think tank New America suggests their fears about going to work will have ripple effects.By the numbers: Nationwide, from January to July 2025 — the early days of the Trump administration&#x27;s crackdown — about 39,000 foreign-born child care workers dropped out of the workforce, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="the report&#x27;s authors concluded" data-vars-click-url="https://d1y8sb8igg2f8e.cloudfront.net/documents/The_Impact_of_Increased_ICE_Activity_on_the_Child_Care_Workforce_and_Mothers_E_ipNMo5s.pdf" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://d1y8sb8igg2f8e.cloudfront.net/documents/The_Impact_of_Increased_ICE_Activity_on_the_Child_Care_Workforce_and_Mothers_E_ipNMo5s.pdf" target="_blank">the report&#x27;s authors concluded</a>.<ul><li>During that period, 77,000 U.S.-born working mothers with preschool-aged children also left the workforce, New America estimated. (There were around 7.7 million working moms with 0- to 5-year-old kids.)</li></ul>The intrigue: Over the same time span, the number of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="working mothers" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2025/10/02/women-jobs-rto" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2025/10/02/women-jobs-rto" target="_self">working mothers</a> of young children dropped 3 percentage points, to its lowest rate since 2021.<ul><li>The decline has been primarily driven by white mothers and those who are highly educated leaving the workforce, according to the New America report.</li></ul>The bottom line: There&#x27;s no shortage of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="theories" data-vars-click-url="https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/working-moms-affected-return-office-policies-expert/story?id=124613629" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/working-moms-affected-return-office-policies-expert/story?id=124613629" target="_blank">theories</a> as to why women are <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="quitting their jobs" data-vars-click-url="https://www.npr.org/2025/09/12/nx-s1-5537129-e1/why-mothers-in-the-u-s-are-scaling-back-on-their-work-lives" data-vars-content-id="62a20371-c0bc-4487-961b-b243c594080e" data-vars-headline="ICE surge worsens child care staffing crunch in Minnesota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.npr.org/2025/09/12/nx-s1-5537129-e1/why-mothers-in-the-u-s-are-scaling-back-on-their-work-lives" target="_blank">quitting their jobs</a>.<ul><li>That said, the New America report provides some of the first evidence that immigration enforcement&#x27;s squeeze on child care availability is contributing to the drop-off, co-author and Arizona State University professor Chris Herbst said.</li></ul>Editor&#x27;s note: This story was updated to add McLaughlin&#x27;s statement.

Some Minnesota students are missing school because they fear ICE

Absenteeism has risen in several Twin Cities districts, prompting Minneapolis to offer a distance learning option.

Several Twin Cities schools have seen an uptick in <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="absenteeism" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2023/09/15/minnesota-students-school-absence-rises-pandemic" data-vars-content-id="d0b5ba13-f8a5-4b81-9a1b-135335c06ace" data-vars-headline="Some Minnesota students are missing school because they fear ICE" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2023/09/15/minnesota-students-school-absence-rises-pandemic" target="_self">absenteeism</a> as some students and parents fear <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="immigration officers might detain them" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2025/12/16/ice-immigrant-business-minneapolis-metro-surge" data-vars-content-id="d0b5ba13-f8a5-4b81-9a1b-135335c06ace" data-vars-headline="Some Minnesota students are missing school because they fear ICE" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2025/12/16/ice-immigrant-business-minneapolis-metro-surge" target="_self">immigration officers might detain them</a> on their way to or from school, advocates and district officials say.Why it matters: Districts like <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Minneapolis" data-vars-click-url="https://www.minnpost.com/education/2026/01/minneapolis-schools-to-offer-remote-learning-amid-federal-immigration-enforcement/" data-vars-content-id="d0b5ba13-f8a5-4b81-9a1b-135335c06ace" data-vars-headline="Some Minnesota students are missing school because they fear ICE" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.minnpost.com/education/2026/01/minneapolis-schools-to-offer-remote-learning-amid-federal-immigration-enforcement/" target="_blank">Minneapolis</a> are adjusting by dusting off pandemic-era <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="distance learning plans" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2022/08/01/schools-pandemic-students-learning-loss" data-vars-content-id="d0b5ba13-f8a5-4b81-9a1b-135335c06ace" data-vars-headline="Some Minnesota students are missing school because they fear ICE" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2022/08/01/schools-pandemic-students-learning-loss" target="_self">distance learning plans</a> that were <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="far from ideal" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2022/07/12/pandemic-remote-school-english-learners-effects" data-vars-content-id="d0b5ba13-f8a5-4b81-9a1b-135335c06ace" data-vars-headline="Some Minnesota students are missing school because they fear ICE" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2022/07/12/pandemic-remote-school-english-learners-effects" target="_self">far from ideal</a> for student learning — but may be a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="better alternative" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/11/21/student-chronic-absenteeism-covid-recovery" data-vars-content-id="d0b5ba13-f8a5-4b81-9a1b-135335c06ace" data-vars-headline="Some Minnesota students are missing school because they fear ICE" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/11/21/student-chronic-absenteeism-covid-recovery" target="_self">better alternative</a> now for students who otherwise wouldn&#x27;t be in class at all.

A district-wide map of school closures in Minneapolis Public Schools, showing district boundaries and a series of colored circles denoting which schools close under each of three district proposals, which schools close under only one or two of those proposals, and which schools would remain open. Larger circles indicate a greater enrollment at the school.

Proposed Minneapolis school closures

Data: Minneapolis Public Schools capacity study; Note: Map omits some schools where key data is unavailable

Education 📚

Map: Explore Minneapolis' school closure plans

Rising diesel prices strain Minnesota school bus budgets

Minnesota colleges earn F for campus free speech

MPS could face school closures under new options

Scoop: University of Minnesota to remove recently installed Flock camera on the West Bank