The gates to the Minnesota State Fairgrounds open this morning to the first wave of the roughly 2 million people who will eat, drink, and be amused over the next 12 days.

Going to the fair this year? Here's what you need to know.

⏱ Hours: 7am to 11pm, except on Labor Day, when it closes at 9pm.

💵 Cost: $18 for adults, $16 for seniors (65+), $16 for kids (ages 5-12), and free for kids 4 and under.

• Pro tip: Bring cash. While some vendors take credit cards, plenty of others don't.

🎶 Music: There are more than 900 free performances this year, including Semisonic on Sept. 1 and 2.

• The paid-ticket Grandstand lineup includes Chance the Rapper, Blake Shelton, Ludacris & T-Pain, Mötley Crüe, and Matchbox Twenty.

🌯 New food: There are six new vendors and 33 new foods to try this year, including El Burrito Mercado, Kosharina Egyptian Cuisine, and Chan's Eatery.

🍺 There are also 63 new specialty drinks, from the Grumpy Old Manhattan to the Mudslide Slushie.

🚨Be sure to follow the Axios Twin Cities Instagram for photos and reviews of the new food and beverages today. We will have a recap in Friday's newsletter.

🚍 How to get there: Yes, there are parking spots, but they're limited and you might find yourself circling traffic-choked streets.

• Consider one of the 30+ park-and-rides, Metro Transit, or one of three secured bike corrals.

🦽 Getting around: Electric mobility scooters, strollers, wagons, and wheelchairs are available for rent.

📆 When to go: Attendance for last year's fair was 1.84 million, still a bit below the 2019 record of 2.13 million. With good weather, 2 million could be in sight again.

• To avoid the longest lines, consider going today, tomorrow, or Monday through Thursday of next week. Those days have the lowest average attendance, according to MPR News.
• The two busiest days — by far — are the final Saturday and Sunday.

What we're watching: If and when Gov. Tim Walz will take a break from the campaign trail to make a visit. He told WCCO Radio he was unsure, before saying, "The State Fair I'll be at."

Tell a fellow fairgoer

Editor's note: This story has been updated with the correct daily closing times at the State Fair.

"You can go over there, get smashed on alcohol, go on a ride, and throw up all over everybody because you've been drinking. That's perfectly fine. … and yet they have banned cannabis."

Ventura, a longtime advocate of  legal recreational marijuana who now owns a cannabis company, says he won't return to the State Fair "until they treat cannabis the same as they do alcohol."

The other side: The fair is following a state law that bars possession of any cannabis product in locations "where the smoke, aerosol, or vapor of a cannabis product could be inhaled by a minor," a spokesperson told Axios.

🎯 Target sales rose 3% last quarter, slightly better than Wall Street expected. Grocery aisle deals and affordable clothing prices were key to reversing a year-long sales slump. (AP)

🏗️ Ryan Companies is seeking $21 million in St. Paul city funding to jumpstart housing construction at the former Ford plant site. (Star Tribune)

• The development is "meaningfully far behind," a company official told the paper.

🏛️ The Minnesota Supreme Court declined to intervene after the latest ruling over Minneapolis' 2040 zoning plan, another victory for the city and its rules legalizing denser housing development. (FOX9)

👂 Minneapolis appears likely to expand the use of ShotSpotter gunshot detection technology into the Uptown, Loring Park, and Whittier neighborhoods. (MinnPost)

Gov. Tim Walz leaned heavily into his personal story last night as he formally accepted the Democratic Party's vice presidential nomination.

The Minnesota moments: Mankato West alums appeared in a video and on stage, donning their red and white Scarlets jerseys. John Legend performed Prince's "Let's Go Crazy."

• U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar and former Walz student Ben Ingman gave introductory remarks.
• Nic Zapko, the ASL interpreter who was a frequent presence during the governor's pandemic updates, appeared on the jumbotron to sign the speech.

Inside the room: Delegates waved red, white, and blue "Coach Walz" signs from the floor, cheering loudly at mentions of new state laws on book bans and universal school meals.

• Cameras captured his wife and kids overcome with emotion in their seats. Video of his son Gus standing and saying, "That's my dad" through sobs went viral.

👋 1 Minnesota goodbye to go: The state's delegates, who carried large cutouts of Walz's face, were among the last to leave United Center.

More coverage: Tim Walz's "aww shucks" force field

Minnesota Wild general manager Bill Guerin was bullish on the Wild's postseason chances at a public taping of the team's official podcast on Tuesday.

What they're saying: "They're as good as every other year we've made the playoffs," he told a crowd at Xcel Energy Center.

• "Advancing past the first round — it's doable. We can do it."

Reality check: Vegas says Minnesota's an NHL playoff bubble team.

The big picture: Still burdened by huge salary cap penalties, the Wild were quiet in free agency.

• The Wild's playoff route runs through legitimate Stanley Cup contenders, such as Colorado and Dallas, and division rivals like Nashville, poised to surge after significant signings.

Yes, but: The team's stars are healthy again after nursing injuries much of last season — and Guerin said he expects the team's younger players to play bigger roles this year.

👀 Billy's message to those young guns…</a>