Judge denies Hecker’s request that two charges be dropped: U.S. District Court Judge Joan Ericksen has denied Denny Hecker’s request that two charges against him be dropped. Ericksen’s ruling is in keeping with one handed down by U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan Nelson in early July. Hecker, a former auto dealership mogul, had requested that two of the 25 felony counts levied against him, including money laundering, conspiracy and fraud charges, be dropped. Read full story
U.S. Bank helps Google set up housing fund: A division of U.S. Bancorp has helped Google Inc. set up an $86 million low-income housing fund. The fund will back construction of 480 affordable rental units in Western and Midwestern states, including Minnesota’s Apple Valley, U.S. Bank said. Earlier this year, Google invested $25 million in a pair of California development projects as part of a low-income housing tax credit fund it set up with San Francisco-based Union Bank. Read full story
Capella ranks 71st on Fortune’s fastest-growing list: Capella Education Co. was the only Minnesota company to make Fotune magazine’s list of the 100 fastest-growing companies. The Minneapolis-based online university ranked 71st on the list, which rates companies based on sales and profit growth over a three-year period. The rankings, published in the magazine’s Sept. 6 issue, also take into account annualized total rate of return. Read full story
