Wildfires in southern and western Minnesota burned thousands of acres, marking the start of an early wildfire season. A local podcast is looking at the future of farming in Minnesota. In the Twin Cities, houses of worship are opening their doors to provide beds to migrant families. And a new campaign urges people to move to Minnesota. Plus, Lou Nanne prepares for his last week broadcasting the Boys State Hockey Tournament.

Minnesota hockey legend Lou Nanne is hanging up his hat. This week will be his 60th and final year calling the Minnesota Boy’s State Hockey Tournament at Xcel Energy Center.

Nanne began broadcasting the state tournament in 1964 after playing three seasons for the University of Minnesota Gophers. He went on to play in the NHL and on the Olympic team. He managed and coached. Through all that time, he always came back to calls plays for Boys Hockey.

Nanne joined MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer to look back on his career. You can watch him for his final broadcast Wednesday through Saturday on Channel 45.

Explore Minnesota launched a new ad campaign Monday called “The Star of the North.” And it’s not just to get people to travel here. For the first time, the state’s tourism agency is urging people to move to the Land of 10,000 Lakes. The campaign from the state's tourism department is being funded with $25 million from the legislature. Explore Minnesota’s Deputy Director of Destinations Kat Sutton joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about how the agency plans to convince people to relocate.

Beginning Wednesday, houses of worship in the Twin Cities will open their doors to provide extra beds to migrant families who need a place to stay.

According to a recent story in the Sahan Journal, Hennepin County staff say their shelters for families experiencing homelessness are beyond capacity and half of the families in the shelters are recent arrivals from the southern border and major U.S. cities.

MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer spoke with Liliana Letran-Garcia, CEO of the nonprofit Interfaith Action of Greater St. Paul, the nonprofit coordinating the program.

The vast majority of people don’t know the ins and outs of what it takes to run a successful farm even though we all rely on farms to live. A podcast by the Minnesota Sustainable Farming Association pulls back the curtain on what it takes to make our food. The co-host of “Dirt Rich,” Katie Feterl, joined MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer to talk about it.

Wildfires in southern and western Minnesota burned thousands of acres on Sunday amid warm, windy, and dry conditions.

The fire that started north of Waseca was under control as of last night, after it burned more than 1,000 acres. In western Minnesota, a fast-moving wildfire southwest of Fergus Falls burned more than 2,000 acres of grassland and is also under control.

The fires mark the start of an early wildfire season. With no snow cover and dry conditions, this year’s fire season could be a long one. MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer talked with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ Leanne Langeberg for an update.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.  

We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here. 

State officials are projecting a $3.5 billion surplus for the budget ending in 2025. We'll hear how they'll use it - and future financial pitfalls.

And city government is considering taking on global politics -- we'll talk to an expert about why city councils might call for a ceasefire in Gaza.

It's Leap Day, which is a special day for Geocachers. We'll talk to an avid geocacher about his plans.

We'll hear the little-told story of Eliza Winston, a woman who was freed from slavery in Minnesota.

And a woman tells the story of kind strangers after a running accident.

Thursday on our show means sports! We'll get the latest on college basketball superstar Caitlin Clark and her record-breaking stop in Minnesota.

If you've been paying any attention to college basketball lately, you've heard the name Caitlin Clark. In Wednesday night's game against the Gophers, the Iowa Hawkeyes player scored eight three-pointers, 33 points, and 10 rebounds. She's generated a lot of love for women's college basketball this year in pursuit of NCAA scoring records. Clark beat the women's record last night and came 18 points away from beating the men's and women's record. Her next chance at that is Sunday's game against Ohio State.

Joining me to talk about last night's game and all things Minnesota sports is Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson. Wally is the founder of Minnesota Score Magazine and the co-host of the ten thousand takes sports talk show. Eric is the other host of that show and the Vikings reporter for CBS sports.

St. Paul’s city council has yet to formally debate a resolution calling for a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war. Council Member Nelsie Yang tried to bring a resolution at Wednesday night’s meeting just as Council President Mitra Jalali adjourned, not allowing the resolution to move forward. Yang also took issue with the adjournment, calling it undemocratic. But a spokesperson for Jalali said she was following normal procedure. She’s also said she signed onto a letter from public officials asking the White House to call for a cease-fire.

This is all happening, of course, in a larger context as constituents demand their local leaders take a stance on what is happening in Gaza. Across the river in Minneapolis, the city council earlier this month overrode a veto by Mayor Jacob Frey to pass their own cease-fire resolution.

Joining MPR News Host Cathy Wurzer to talk about this mix of local and global politics is University of Minnesota Political Expert Larry Jacobs.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.  

We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here. 

Minnesota still has a projected budget surplus. State budget officials presented their latest financial forecast Thursday morning and it projects a $3.7 billion surplus for the budget ending in 2025. That is up by about $1.3 billion compared to the prior estimate in December. But there are still some potential tougher financial straits down the road.

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  Minnesota posts $3.7 billion budget surplus, with financial pressure on the horizon
  
  

Our senior politics reporter Dana Ferguson was there and joined Cathy Wurzer to explain.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.

Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.  

We attempt to make transcripts for Minnesota Now available the next business day after a broadcast. When ready they will appear here.