Nick here. I've been covering Ramsey County's lofty goals to redevelop the St. Paul riverfront for years.

• Today, I'm raising the idea that instead of swinging for the fences, maybe it's time to hit a single or double in order to restore some momentum to a downtown that is struggling.

Why it matters: County officials announced yesterday that for the third time in about 20 years, they're looking for a new master developer and even more money as they hope to reignite the project.

The latest: Ramsey County officials at a press conference outlined a $320 million economic development initiative centered on a $140 million park, parking ramp and land bridge that would provide a long-desired connection from downtown to the Mississippi River.

By the numbers: This plan includes a $20 million state bonding request, $70 million in vacant land sales, plus tapping into existing bonding authority and infrastructure funds.

Zoom in: That's not even the most complicated aspect of the "RiversEdge" project, which was born in 2018 when Ramsey County chose Dallas-based AECOM — a giant engineering and architecture firm with no local development experience — over Twin Cities firms.

• AECOM's fanciful design included four massive towers with 1.2 million square feet of office space, housing and a hotel, all built over a land bridge to the river.

Yes, but: A land bridge requires Union Pacific and Canadian Pacific Kansas City railroads to grant the county air rights over their tracks that run between the bluff and river.

• When this plan was hatched, real estate sources told me that getting railroads — or, more specifically, their insurance companies — to sign off on running oil trains beneath skyscrapers would be a nonstarter.

Here's another complicating factor: AECOM is out as master developer, and the county will have to put out another call to find new ones.

Reality check: I asked the county's top economic development official, Josh Olson, why not do something easier — sell the 5 acres of land to experienced St. Paul developers and let them build something like 1,000 housing units, with a couple of narrow pedestrian bridges down to the river?

The other side: Olson said that this, to him, is the most appealing development site in the metro and a land bridge would solve a huge problem for downtown, which is that there's no good way to get to the river.

Progress with the railroads

Federal tax refunds are up this year — just not by quite as much as initially projected, despite new tax breaks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

By the numbers: The average check is about $3,454, up 11% from $3,116 last year, according to IRS filing season data through April 3.

• Yes, but: The typical increase is closer to $300 — not the $600–$700 many expected, or the $1,000 the White House promised.

Driving the trend

💰 Amy Klobuchar raised $4.8 million in the first two months of her DFL gubernatorial campaign, ending March with $3.4 million in the bank, per a release out this morning.

• The GOP candidate with the highest-self reported totals so far, House Speaker Lisa Demuth, says she has $540,000 cash on hand after raising $226,000 in the first quarter.

🗼Foshay Tower's owner has defaulted on the $51 million mortgage for the 32-story downtown Minneapolis landmark. (Star Tribune)

🏛️ An ex-boyfriend admitted to shooting and killing Mariah Samuels during his trial on first-degree murder charges. (KARE11)

• The case generated scrutiny of Minneapolis police's handling of domestic violence cases.

🦷 U of M researchers found no evidence that fluoride in drinking water affects children's intelligence levels. (Star Tribune)

🔄 St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her announced yesterday she'll appoint current Met Council member Deb Barber as the city's public works director. Current director Sean Kershaw will serve under Barber in an interim role. (Background via the Pioneer Press)

• Parks director Andy Rodriguez and IT chief Jaime Wascalus will remain in their jobs.

Minnesota's Community Solar Garden Program is now named for slain former House Speaker Melissa Hortman.

The big picture: Hortman has been hailed as one of the most consequential speakers in modern history.

• But she considered the 2013 creation of the solar program one of her top personal political achievements.

Catch up fast: The program allows Minnesotans who can't install solar panels on their homes to tap into renewable energy and receive a credit on their electricity bills.

Zoom out: The renaming bill, signed into law yesterday by Gov. Tim Walz, is one of several proposals to honor Hortman under consideration at the Capitol this year.

• Others would rename Highway 610 and the State Office Building and create a memorial garden and statue near the Capitol in her honor.

🐶 Honoring Gilbert

A new short film in theaters this week reimagines a long-running Minneapolis mystery with a fantastical twist.

The big picture: "The Boom," written and directed by local Ojibwe and Cree filmmaker Ajuawak Kapashesit, follows an Indigenous man as he investigates a mysterious noise heard during his food delivery route through Minneapolis.

• Though the story is fictional, it's inspired by Kapashesit's experiences with the Longfellow Boom, the "house-shakingly loud" noise that has mystified the neighborhood's residents for decades.

What he's saying: "Everyone has a theory on what the boom could be, but I also find a lot of joy in unexplained, mysterious aspects of the world," Kapashesit told Axios.

• All filming took place in the Twin Cities at night — including outside the United Crushers building and in a secret underground location — but the Longfellow Boom is intentionally never referred to by name

Fun fact: In addition to its "real" source, the boom noise used in the film was created using elements from popular theories on its origin, like the sound of an exploding transformer.

• Catch the film at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival tomorrow and Saturday.

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