New round of evacuations in northeastern Minnesota as Greenwood Fire grows to 9,000 acres

MPR’s Sarah Gelbard and Andrew Krueger report: “The Greenwood Fire in northeastern Minnesota grew to more than 9,000 acres early Saturday — up from fewer than 5,000 acres Friday morning — as firefighting crews prepared for gusty, erratic winds from a cold front moving across the region. The fire — zero percent contained at last report — prompted another round of evacuations Friday afternoon after it jumped a county highway and spread to the west.”

For KSTP-TV, Josh Skluzacek reports: “Security fencing around the Minnesota Capitol is going back up. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety confirmed to 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that the fencing is going back up after the Minnesota State Patrol requested it out of an abundance of caution due to several events planned next week. … According to Bruce Gordon, the director of communications for DPS, the increased fencing is supposed to help troopers protect the property and people without interfering with peaceful gatherings at the Capitol.”

For the Star Tribune, Brooks Johnson writes: “According to the census, Duluth barely grew over the past decade. According to the past year in the local real estate market, it’s a region on the rise. What gives? … Since 2010, Duluth has gained a total of just 36 single-family homes, according to city data. Several years saw more houses demolished than built, a testament to a housing stock that is far older than the state average. ‘That’s our Achilles heel,’ said Shaina Nickila, president of the board of Lake Superior Area Realtors (LSAR). ‘It’s that age-old question, do we invest in renovating old homes or do we invest in new construction?’”

FOX 9 reports, “Basilica Block Party will require all attendees to show proof of full COVID-19 vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test to get into this year’s music festival. Organizers announced Friday attendees will need to bring a photo ID plus either proof of vaccination or a negative test result from the last 72 hours. Face masks will not be required, but are strongly encouraged.”

WCCO-TV reports: “A downtown Minneapolis cafe will be among the first in the state to require a negative COVID-19 test or proof of vaccination in order to dine inside. The owners of Hark Cafe, located in the city’s North Loop neighborhood, say the decision wasn’t made overnight. They came to it after looking at similar moves made by restaurants in Los Angels, Chicago and New York.”

In the Star Tribune, Kevin Duchschere writes: “A female pedestrian was struck and killed early Saturday in south Minneapolis by a motorist who then fled the scene, according to police. The victim, thought to be in her 40s, was found unconscious around 1:30 a.m. in the area of Bloomington Avenue and E. Lake Street and died there, despite efforts by paramedics to resuscitate her. Police believe that a vehicle, possibly a dark-colored sedan, struck the woman while southbound on Bloomington near Lake. The vehicle then continued south on Bloomington.”