October 7, 1997 - Remember the house of straw? Built by a hasty and foolish piglet, blown down with ease by a hungry wolf - the straw house was a warning to us all. Well, in fact, it turns out straw makes a pretty good house. Nebraska farmers knew it a century ago, and now houses made of strawbales are making a revival that's reached from New Mexico, to New Zealand, to Northern Minnesota.
August 22, 1997 - Dwight and Vance Opperman are buying a 12-and-a-half percent share of the Internet Broadcasting System of Edina. IBS runs the Channel 4000 online service in Minnesota. Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Collins reports this investment by the former owners of West Publishing company fuels an increasing dominance of new forms of media by those who made their fortunes in newspapers and magazines.
July 4, 1997 - Rookie lawmakers of the Minnesota Legislature generally keep quiet while they learn the ropes at the Capitol. But the recently-completed legislative session ushered in an era of bi-partisanship and featured an attempt to turn away from the croynism of years past. It gave novice legislators the chance to wield some influence. And some did. Minnesota Public Radio's Bob Collins reports, most freshmen legislators got an education in the reality of Capitol politics too.
May 6, 1997 - The gas tax debate traditionally pits rural legislators against metro lawmakers and this year was no different. The bulk of the Senate floor debate yesterday centered on an attempt by New Brighton Senator Steve Novak who wanted more of the gas tax money earmarked for metropolitan areas. Here's an edited sample of yesterday's debate.
April 30, 1997 - A MYSTERIOUS DEVELOPMENT IN THE FLOOD STORY OF THE GRAND FORKS AREA HAS RESIDENTS WHO'VE BEEN THROUGH AN INCREDIBLE ORDEAL FINDING SOME HOPE. A SECRET DONOR IS OFFERING FLOODED OUT FAMILIES 2-THOUSAND DOLLARS NOT IN LOANS BUT AS OUTRIGHT GIFTS IN THE HOPE THE MONEY WILL HELP EASE THEIR BURDEN. MINNESOTA PUBLIC RADIO'S MARK ZDECHLIK REPORTS. Sun 28-MAY 19:43:20 MPR NewsPro Archive - Wed 04/11/2001
April 3, 1997 - WHAT LITTLE MOMENTUM A BILL TO BUILD A NEW STADIUM FOR THE TWINS HAD AT THE LEGISLATURE IS GONE. LATE LAST NIGHT, A KEY HOUSE COMMITTEE BLOCKED THE MEASURE FROM ADVANCING. MINNESOTA PUBLIC RADIO'S BOB COLLINS HAS THE STORY LEGISLATORS HATE THE LATEST VERSION OF THE STADIUM BILL. TWINS OFFICIALS AREN'T HAPPY WITH IT. AND MOST MINNESOTANS ARE AGAINST IT. BUT EVEN THOUGH THE HOUSE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND METROPOLITAN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE REFUSED TO PASS THE BILL LAST NIGHT, IT'S STILL ALIVE. BY A SINGLE VOTE, THE COMMITTEE REFUSED TO REFER THE STADIUM BILL TO THE TAXES COMMITTEE..and so THE PUBLIC FINANCING BILL IS NOW STALLED.
March 21, 1997 - A SENATE COMMITTEE HAS DEALT A BLOW TO THE MINNESOTA TWINS EFFORT TO GET A TAXPAYER PAID STADIUM BUILT FOR THEM. MINNESOTA PUBLIC RADIO'S BOB COLLINS REPORTS AFTER MORE THAN 3 HOURS OF TESTIMONY AND DEBATE...AND WITH SOME MEMBERS WANTING TO CALL IT A NIGHT TO WATCH THE GOPHERS PLAY BASKETBALL, THE SENATE METROPOLITAN AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE DECIDED TO TAKE NO ACTION ON THE MEASURE TO SPEND OVER 400 MILLION DOLLARS ON A NEW BASEBALL STADIUM. THE LEGISLATION ISN'T DEAD BY A LONG SHOT, BUT THE COMMITTEE FACES A DEADLINE OF NEXT WEEK TO TAKE ACTION ON THE MEASURE AND THERE APPEARS TO BE PLENTY OF WORK YET TO BE DONE ON IT.
February 10, 1997 - Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life is planning a rally tomorrow at the state capitol to protest a medical procedure sometimes referred to as "partial-birth abortions." Banning the relatively rare abortion procedure is an MCCL priority this year, but some lawmakers say they're not as concerned about MCCL's priorities as they used to be. MCCL lost a powerful ally when House Speaker Irv Anderson was toppled last month, and that's translated into a loss of clout at the Capitol. Minnesota Public Radio's Martin Kaste reports.
February 7, 1997 - Supporters say the tobacco bill was weakened by an amendment from Rush City DFL'er Loren Jennings who proposed eliminating a provision that would ban shelf displays of cigarettes in stores and move cigarettes to behind the counter. That touched off a floor debate on how much access kids should have to cigarettes in stores. Here's an edited sample of some of the debate.
December 12, 1996 - University of Minnesota Presidential Candidate Mark Yudof got generally high marks from legislative leaders following a morning meeting at the capital. The board of regents votes tomorrow on whether to offer Yudoff the position of president.