Twin Cities

Picture of the Twin Cities skyline with MSP written across it.

blue

Get smarter, faster on what matters in Twin Cities with Nick Halter, Torey Van Oot, and Kyle Stokes.

Axios Twin Cities

Standard

Get smarter, faster about what’s happening in your backyard with local reporters Nick Halter, Audrey Kennedy and Torey Van Oot.

Axios Twin Cities Thought Bubble

Thought Bubble

Twin Cities Alerts

Alert

Axios Twin Cities Deep Dive

Deep Dive

Twin Cities Members

Membership

A guide to fun things to do in Twin Cities this weekend.

Axios Twin Cities Weekender

Weekender

Axios Twin Cities Partners

Twin Cities weekend guide: Uptown Porchfest, IndiaFest, Como Park events, and more

A free, neighborhood-wide music festival returns to Minneapolis' Lowry Hill East.

Things to Do

Minneapolis&#x27; Lowry Hill East is throwing a free, neighborhood-wide music festival on Saturday as <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Uptown Porchfest" data-vars-click-url="https://uptownporchfest.com/" data-vars-content-id="e45e4d4f-1cd0-4f20-85a4-be4e1cc340da" data-vars-headline="Twin Cities weekend guide: Uptown Porchfest, IndiaFest, Como Park events, and more" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://uptownporchfest.com/" target="_blank">Uptown Porchfest</a> returns for its fourth year.Why it matters: More than 30 porches, stoops and front yards in &quot;the Wedge&quot; host 90+ acts spanning from indie folk and &quot;toe-tapping tunes&quot; to metal and R&amp;B.<ul><li>The vibes: Excellent. Check out <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="our Instagram reel" data-vars-click-url="https://www.instagram.com/reels/DNTlI3bRXza/" data-vars-content-id="e45e4d4f-1cd0-4f20-85a4-be4e1cc340da" data-vars-headline="Twin Cities weekend guide: Uptown Porchfest, IndiaFest, Como Park events, and more" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.instagram.com/reels/DNTlI3bRXza/" target="_blank">our Instagram reel</a> from a previous year&#x27;s event for a whiff of them.</li></ul>

Map: Minnesota primary results by county for Peggy Flanagan, Lisa Demuth

County results show metro strength for both winners — and Flanagan's reach across Greater Minnesota.

Election

Big vote totals in the Twin Cities and surrounding suburbs fueled Lisa Demuth and Peggy Flanagan&#x27;s landslide wins in their respective GOP gubernatorial and DFL U.S. Senate primaries.Why it matters: Minnesotans living in the vote-heavy metro will play a pivotal role in picking the winners of the high-stakes races for governor and U.S. senator this fall.<ul><li>How voters break in suburban swing districts will also determine control of the narrowly divided state Legislature. </li></ul>

Restaurant Roundup: Oro by Nixta earns New York Times nod 

The Northeast Minneapolis restaurant continues to gain national recognition.

Food and Drink

🇲🇽 Oro by Nixta was named one of the country&#x27;s greatest Mexican restaurants <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="by the New York Times" data-vars-click-url="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/13/dining/best-mexican-restaurants-united-states.html" data-vars-content-id="0e0995e0-15f1-4458-9c8e-a9b7ad6fb9f6" data-vars-headline="Restaurant Roundup: Oro by Nixta earns New York Times nod " data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/13/dining/best-mexican-restaurants-united-states.html" target="_blank">by the New York Times</a>.🌪️ A weather-themed sports bar from retired KSTP meteorologist Dave Dahl is opening in Stillwater this fall, Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="reports" data-vars-click-url="https://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/news/2026/08/10/dave-dahl-tornado-room-bar-restaurant-stillwater.html" data-vars-content-id="0e0995e0-15f1-4458-9c8e-a9b7ad6fb9f6" data-vars-headline="Restaurant Roundup: Oro by Nixta earns New York Times nod " data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/news/2026/08/10/dave-dahl-tornado-room-bar-restaurant-stillwater.html" target="_blank">reports</a>.

Fairview selling St. Paul Midway campus

It's another redevelopment opportunity for a neighborhood full of cranes.

News

Fairview has informed employees it plans to sell its St. Paul <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Midway" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/10/17/midway-neighborhood-allianz-field-crisis-homelessness" data-vars-content-id="65dc7646-7659-4466-9c75-c54445809392" data-vars-headline="Fairview selling St. Paul Midway campus" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/10/17/midway-neighborhood-allianz-field-crisis-homelessness" target="_self">Midway</a> campus, the health care giant confirmed to Axios.Why it matters: Fairview&#x27;s departure — from a site it wasn&#x27;t fully using — frees 7 acres for redevelopment in a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="neighborhood" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2026/07/13/midway-marketplace-hmart-playground" data-vars-content-id="65dc7646-7659-4466-9c75-c54445809392" data-vars-headline="Fairview selling St. Paul Midway campus" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2026/07/13/midway-marketplace-hmart-playground" target="_self">neighborhood</a> already <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="full of cranes and construction" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2025/02/28/allianz-field-united-village-construction" data-vars-content-id="65dc7646-7659-4466-9c75-c54445809392" data-vars-headline="Fairview selling St. Paul Midway campus" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2025/02/28/allianz-field-united-village-construction" target="_self">full of cranes and construction</a>.<ul><li>It&#x27;s just two blocks away from several high-profile projects underway near <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Allianz Field" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2025/10/14/mnufc-united-village-development-park-rink" data-vars-content-id="65dc7646-7659-4466-9c75-c54445809392" data-vars-headline="Fairview selling St. Paul Midway campus" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2025/10/14/mnufc-united-village-development-park-rink" target="_self">Allianz Field</a> and the Snelling-University transit hub.</li></ul>

The treaty that stripped Minnesota from the Dakota

The 1851 treaty is the great double-cross that set Minnesota on its course to statehood.

History

On this date 175 years ago, two Dakota tribes signed the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Treaty of Traverse des Sioux" data-vars-click-url="https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/event/treaty-traverse-des-sioux-1851" data-vars-content-id="d1e24d56-1d60-4b06-a490-fb93e89f9e1b" data-vars-headline="The treaty that stripped Minnesota from the Dakota" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.mnhs.org/mnopedia/search/index/event/treaty-traverse-des-sioux-1851" target="_blank">Treaty of Traverse des Sioux</a>, settling their debts by handing over much of the land that would become Minnesota.Why it matters: The 1851 treaty is the great double-cross that set Minnesota on its course to statehood.<ul><li>It opened ancestral Native lands to a flood of white settlers via a deal that its white authors likely knew was crooked — and definitely knew would be ruinous to the Dakota.</li></ul>

Mapped: Honoring Minnesota's WWII heroes

Roughly 45,000 WWII veterans remain nationwide, including about 1,224 in Minnesota.

A dwindling number of World War II veterans remain with us as we mark the 82nd anniversary of D-Day this weekend.

What the Twin Cities were like in the 1990s

Both downtowns struggled and the region made big contributions to U.S. culture.

Nostalgia for the 1990s is all the rage on social media these days as celebrities, athletes and influencers post photos of what they looked like back then.What were the Twin Cities like in the 1990s? If you saw only the glamour shots, you&#x27;d think of a bustling Nicollet Mall, a vibrant Uptown dining scene, a World Series parade, and the ribbon cutting for Mall of America.

Park Board takes step toward closing Minnehaha dog park

Commissioners sounded supportive of the idea, citing the sacred burial grounds.

An effort to close the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Minnehaha Off-Leash Dog Park" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2021/05/24/twin-cities-best-dog-parks-minneapolis-st-paul?utm_source=newsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=newsletter_axioslocal_minneapolis&amp;stream=top" data-vars-content-id="2af35b60-212e-499f-8c89-37fe82eaf34e" data-vars-headline="Park Board takes step toward closing Minnehaha dog park" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2021/05/24/twin-cities-best-dog-parks-minneapolis-st-paul?utm_source=newsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=newsletter_axioslocal_minneapolis&amp;stream=top" target="_self">Minnehaha Off-Leash Dog Park</a> is gaining traction with Minneapolis Park &amp; Recreation Board commissioners.Why it matters: Advocates for closing the dog park — along the Mississippi River near Fort Snelling — say the land is sacred to the Dakota people and contains artifacts and human remains.

50 years later, the Edmund Fitzgerald's story is told again

The book includes interviews with the family of Minnesotan Nolan Church, who died in the wreck.

Fifty years ago tonight, 29 men — including two from Minnesota — died in the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald on Lake Superior.Why it matters: The story of the demise of one of the most beloved ships in Great Lakes history is well known by an older generation in the Upper Midwest, but younger people may not know much beyond <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Gordon Lightfoot&#x27;s ballad" data-vars-click-url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuzTkGyxkYI" data-vars-content-id="a6a14fdf-6914-4abf-a256-9d39318d1797" data-vars-headline="50 years later, the Edmund Fitzgerald&#x27;s story is told again" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuzTkGyxkYI" target="_blank">Gordon Lightfoot&#x27;s ballad</a>.

On this day: Minnesota's 1890 census kerfuffle

St. Paul and Minneapolis accused each other of cooking the books. It turns out, they both were right.

If you think the rivalry between St. Paul and Minneapolis is petty now, get a load of what happened on this day back in 1890.Flashback: Seven Minneapolis census takers were arrested by the U.S. Marshal from St. Paul, under accusations that they were cooking the books in order to lay claim to the title of &quot;most populous city in Minnesota,&quot; according to the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Minnesota Historical Society" data-vars-click-url="https://www3.mnhs.org/mnopedia/thisday?month=06&amp;day=17" data-vars-content-id="59749fc9-8764-4829-a49d-a1cce1e91882" data-vars-headline="On this day: Minnesota&#x27;s 1890 census kerfuffle" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www3.mnhs.org/mnopedia/thisday?month=06&amp;day=17" target="_blank">Minnesota Historical Society</a>.

Worthy of your time: The Strib's "Ghost of a Chance" podcast

The Star Tribune podcast tells the story through the lives of Harry and Clementine Robinson.

Minnesota never had Jim Crow laws, but that didn&#x27;t prevent decades of injustices against Black Americans who came north looking for better opportunities. Driving the news: The Star Tribune&#x27;s new six-episode &quot;Ghost of a Chance&quot; <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="podcast" data-vars-click-url="https://www.startribune.com/ghost-of-a-chance/601197355" data-vars-content-id="2e6170df-aec7-494d-a424-f7e73d9e92d3" data-vars-headline="Worthy of your time: The Strib&#x27;s &quot;Ghost of a Chance&quot; podcast" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.startribune.com/ghost-of-a-chance/601197355" target="_blank">podcast</a> tells this story through the lives of Harry and Clementine Robinson, a Black couple who bought a house in predominantly white Southwest Minneapolis in 1917.

Prince's childhood North Minneapolis home could get historic designation

The yellow North Minneapolis rambler is where Prince learned to play the piano

This North Minneapolis yellow rambler may not look like a landmark, but it might soon be. Context: The house at 8th Avenue N and Upton is where <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Prince Rogers Nelson" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/07/26/prince-purple-rain-minneapolis-sound" data-vars-content-id="7f5340ef-5fdb-4339-978a-6092cc9a63d1" data-vars-headline="Prince&#x27;s childhood North Minneapolis home could get historic designation" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/twin-cities/2024/07/26/prince-purple-rain-minneapolis-sound" target="_self">Prince Rogers Nelson</a> lived between the ages of 6-12, according to historian Kristen Zschomler, who has been working to preserve the homes where the music icon lived.

Meet Josie Johnson, Minnesota's "first lady of civil rights"

Josie Johnson joined the civil rights movement as a teenager pushing back against poll taxes in Texas.

A new documentary puts a spotlight on Minnesota&#x27;s &quot;first lady of civil rights.&quot;Why it matters: &quot;<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Hope in the Struggle — the Josie Johnson Story" data-vars-click-url="https://www.tpt.org/minnesota-experience/video/hope-in-the-struggle-2fnmtq/" data-vars-content-id="b00fc3a8-11d6-412c-9655-01b838a780be" data-vars-headline="Meet Josie Johnson, Minnesota&#x27;s &quot;first lady of civil rights&quot;" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.tpt.org/minnesota-experience/video/hope-in-the-struggle-2fnmtq/" target="_blank">Hope in the Struggle — the Josie Johnson Story</a>&quot; seeks to inspire a new generation of activists to follow in the trailblazer&#x27;s footsteps.

On this day: Wealthy St. Paul banker kidnapped by Barker gang

The $200,000 ransom paid by Bremer's family is equivalent to $4.6 million today.

On this morning 90 years ago, gangsters followed wealthy St. Paul banker and brewery heir Edward Bremer Jr. after he dropped his daughter off at school. <ul><li>They ambushed him, threw him in the back of a car, and held him for ransom. </li></ul>

A choropleth map showing the projected number of living WWII veterans by state. California leads at about 5k, while Alaska has none. There are about 45k nationally.