Minnesota Now

Google has its eye on two rural Minnesota towns. It wants to develop data centers in Pine Island and Hermantown. The company held open houses Wednesday about their plans and faced big push back. In Hermantown, some people were escorted out by police.

New data on kindergarten vaccine rates are out from the CDC. It shows Minnesota has the third lowest measles vaccination rate in the country. We spoke to a pediatrician about why rates are so low.

Plus, we’ve been talking to the candidates for Hennepin County Attorney. Today, we heard from state Rep. Cedrick Frazier.

And, we talked to the organizer of the first ever Midwest Black Book Fair taking place this weekend.

The Minnesota Music Minute was “Let Me Buy You Coffee” by Matcha Fever. The Song of the Day was “Who Da Man” by Brother Jon Band.

Google is trying to smooth over some ruffled feathers in two small Minnesota towns where the tech giant hopes to build a couple of massive data centers.

Wednesday evening, Google hosted what it called a community celebration in Pine Island, about 20 minutes northwest of Rochester, with free food, live music and family activities.

That same night in Hermantown, outside of Duluth, the company held an open house to answer questions from area residents about the hyperscale data center it wants to build there.

MPR News Rochester-based reporter Molly Castle Work and our Duluth-based reporter Dan Kraker gave us a look inside the events.

As kids start looking ahead to the new school year, health officials are looking at new immunization data – and it’s showing rates have continued to fall over the last year especially in Minnesota.

Kindergartners in our state have the second and third lowest vaccination levels in the country for DTaP and MMR, respectively, at 86 percent for both. These two vaccines are combination shots that protect against a myriad of diseases like whooping cough and measles.

Minnesota also has one of the highest exemption rates at 6.9 percent.

Dr. Andrea Singh, chair of pediatrics at HealthPartners and Park Nicollet, joined Minnesota Now to talk through what these ongoing trends mean.

This weekend is a first for Minnesota’s literary scene. The inaugural Midwest Black Book Fair will bring Black authors and booksellers to north Minneapolis on Saturday.

There will be food for sale, and books as well as workshops and panels. Terresa Hardaway, who’s behind the event and the owner of Black Garnet Books in St. Paul, joined Minnesota Now to give a preview.

Read more about the event here: Inaugural Midwest Black Book Fair will debut in north Minneapolis

There were two winners out of last week’s primary: Former federal prosecutor and Acting U.S. Attorney for Minnesota Anders Folk and state Rep. Cedrick Frazier.

It sets up a November matchup for the seat being vacated by Mary Moriarty.

Minnesota Now host Nina Moini spoke with both candidates. We aired the conversation with Folk Wednesday and we heard from Rep. Frazier Thursday.

Frazier is a three-term state representative and former public defender. His campaign has focused on gun violence and youth crime. He’s also calling for more crime prevention and alternatives to incarceration.

Voter’s Choice: Anders Folk looks to bring federal prosecution experience to Hennepin Co. Attorney's office

Minnesota's gas prices are higher than the national average, after seeing a 20 cent spike in the past week. An expert explained what's behind the prices at the pump and what it would take for prices to decrease.

A federal hemp ban may be delayed after a vote in Congress. Brewers of local hemp-THC drinks hope the delay gives lawmakers more time to reconsider regulations of the lucrative business.

Plus, we heard from one of the candidates running for Hennepin County Attorney, Anders Folk. On Thursday, we’ll hear from his opponent, Cedrick Frazier.

MPR chief meteorologist Ben Cathey shared his weekly weather outlook.

And local teen poets will showcase work that imagines the world they want to see.

The Minnesota Music Minute was “Unbound” by Bizhiki and “My Friends, How to Fail“ by Piltdown was the Song of the Day.

There were two winners out of the August primary: Former federal prosecutor and Acting U.S. Attorney for Minnesota Anders Folk and State Rep. Cedrick Frazier.

It sets up a November matchup for the seat being vacated by Mary Moriarty.

We spoke with both candidates and will air those conversations Wednesday and Thursday, starting with Anders Folk.

Folk signed the federal indictment against Derek Chauvin in the murder of George Floyd. He was also a senior counsel in the Department of Justice under President Joe Biden.

Voter’s Choice: Rep. Cedrick Frazier leans on 'wide variety of experience' in Henn. County Attorney race

How do teens imagine the future of our country and world? That's the question a group of youth poets will answer at a reading taking place Thursday at the Bell Museum.

It's the culmination of a program that spanned several weeks where a group of teens took workshops and received mentorship from adult writers. In that time, they reflected on the 250th anniversary of the U.S. and were prompted to imagine the world they want to see.

Knox Frederickson is one of the teen poets and a rising senior. Amanda Rosas is one of the mentors and a teacher at Visitation School. They talked with MPR News host Nina Moini and shared pieces of their work.

It’s the fine print of federal laws that has made — and potentially unmade — the hemp-derived THC industry. Most recently, the U.S. Senate voted to delay a nationwide ban on these products from Nov. 12 to Dec. 12. The move was part of a government funding measure the House will need to approve when it returns from recess at the end of this month.

One of the businesses watching this closely is Bent Paddle Brewing in Duluth. The brewery began selling hemp-derived THC drinks in 2022 and now has a countdown clock for the ban on its website, set to the November date.

Bent Paddle co-founder and CEO Bryon Tonnis joined MPR News host Nina Moini to talk about how he’s navigating the uncertainty and what a ban could mean for breweries in the state.

Correction: This story has been updated with the correct effective date of the ban, under the Senate-approved vote to delay.

Gas prices are on the rise again.

According to AAA, Minnesota's average on Wednesday sat at $4.14. That's 20 cents higher than a week before and higher than the national average.

University of St. Thomas economics professor Tyler Schipper said it's not likely prices will significantly fall any time soon, unless there are long-term solutions to ongoing global conflicts and issues. He joined MPR News host Nina Moini to explain.