St. Paul officials learned enough from last winter's experiment with one-sided street parking to know they like it — even if the season wasn't very snowy.

Why it matters: St. Paul has launched its second winter of testing a snow-plowing strategy that could all but eliminate the need for costly and disruptive snow emergencies.

How it works: The strategy hinges on drivers being willing to move their cars to the opposite side of the street every week, even when it doesn't snow.

• Starting this week, trial parking rules began in two new areas — roughly 20 square blocks in the Midway and Cathedral Hill neighborhoods.

Zoom in: This week, drivers can legally park on the even side of the street. On Sunday, they'll have a few hours to move their cars to the odd side. The pattern continues through early April.

• The idea: If it snows, the city will send plows to clear two-thirds of the pavement on these streets ASAP — without the need to declare a snow emergency and wait hours for people to move their cars.

Catch up quick: Though the Twin Cities saw roughly half its average seasonal snowfall last year, St. Paul Public Works called two snow emergencies while piloting these same rules in two different neighborhoods: Payne-Phalen and Highland Park. (Those areas are sticking with the old rules this year.)

What they learned: Public Works spokesperson Lisa Hiebert told Axios that a decrease in tickets throughout the trial showed "residents actually caught on pretty quick." (The city issued about 500 violations in the pilot areas, but issued only 54 tickets to repeat violators.)

• Overall, streets in the pilot areas were clearer — without the deep tire-track ruts of compounded snow and ice that are "one of the biggest frustrations," added department director Sean Kershaw.

The intrigue: Kershaw said five straight days of "nuisance snowfalls" between Dec. 28 and New Year's Day pointed to the need for a new approach to snow removal: None of those snowfalls on its own merited calling a snow emergency — but the effects literally piled up on city streets.

• "Everybody wants things to be better, but nobody wants them different," Kershaw said. "To make snow plowing better, we may need to make it different."

What we're watching: Whether the idea continues to gain traction under new St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her.

Full story

A fired-up Gov. Tim Walz unloaded on GOP rivals yesterday as he vowed to use his remaining time in office to push back against the Trump administration.

Why it matters: The gloves-off approach is a preview of what's to come now that Walz has abandoned his plans to run for re-election.

The big picture: As he took questions for the first time since announcing his exit, a defiant Walz predicted that Republicans are going to "lose the governor's race dramatically."

• "Game's over for them now. It was all me. I was the bad guy, whatever. Well, put up or shut up now," he said of his GOP rivals. "Expect for the next 11 months for me to ride you like you've never been ridden."

🗳️ On bowing out: When asked if he was pressured to drop out, Walz said he made the decision with his family after it became apparent that remaining in the race would attract ongoing pressure and attacks from the White House.

📲 On Trump's post: A visibly angry Walz called on GOP candidates to tell Trump to take down a social media post promoting "freaking evil" conspiracy theories about Melissa Hortman's murder.

• He said the response to the post put the Hortman children and Walz's family "at risk again."

🔎 On fraud: Walz said the "buck stops with me" on addressing the issue, but questioned why large cases in red states haven't gotten the same reaction from the White House.

🏛️ On his final legislative priorities: Walz pledged to pursue legislative action restricting guns, saying Republicans "are going to take votes on protecting our children or they're not going to get anything else done."

Walz on his own future

🔬 A U.S. House committee will hold a hearing this morning on fraud allegations in Minnesota. Three GOP state lawmakers, including gubernatorial candidate Kristin Robbins, are expected to testify. (Fox9)

• Go deeper: An overview of the state's sprawling fraud scandals

📂 Minnesota's Office of the Legislative Auditor reported that employees overseeing state-run behavioral health programs failed to keep proper records, then created backdated documents to feed auditors during their latest review. (Star Tribune)

🧊 Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited Minnesota yesterday to herald the recent surge of some 2,100 additional agents to the state. Officials say it amounts to the "largest immigration operation ever." (Sahan Journal)

🏨 Hilton said it would remove a Hampton Inn in Lakeville from its booking website after the hotel refused to accommodate federal agents. (Axios)

🚸 Minneapolis Public Schools — grappling with a $30 million deficit — placed three top officials in the district's finance department on leave, anonymous sources told the Minnesota Reformer.

• A district spokesperson said they couldn't comment due to personnel privacy laws.

🥎 Prosecutors charged the Plymouth Wayzata Youth Softball Association's former treasurer with stealing more than $110,000 from the organization. (CCX Media)

🗓️ Upcoming events in the city.

• Minneapolis Winter Events throughout the city now through Feb 28: Enjoy a full winter calendar of Minneapolis festivals, performances, art events, markets, and more all season long.
• Ice Sculptures at Minneapolis Institute of Art starting tomorrow: Explore ice interpretations of your favorite artworks and warm up inside with a self-guided tour of the originals. Free and on view from Jan. 8 until they melt.

The holiday season may have been merry, but it certainly wasn't bright.

By the numbers: The Twin Cities hasn't had what the National Weather Service deems a "clear" day since Dec. 20.

• 13 of the last 14 days have registered cloud scores of 7 or higher on NWS's 1-10 scale, in which 10 is the cloudiest.
• Six of those days have scored a perfect 10.

Context: Typically, about 25% of days in December and January are clear, according to Minnesota DNR data.

What we're watching: Today and tomorrow's forecasts call for at least some sun, but clouds and snow return this weekend.

The bottom line: It's been a great start to winter for snow lovers, but we're not getting any of those blue bird days that make ice skating, skiing or sledding so much more energizing.

Tell a friend