Minnesota
Business People: Longtime NAMI Minnesota executive director to retire
HEALTH CARE
NAMI Minnesota (National Alliance on Mental Illness) announced that Sue Abderholden will retire as executive director effective Oct. 15. Abderholden has led NAMI Minnesota since October 2001.
AIRPORTS
The Metropolitan Airports Commission announced it has promoted Kelly Gerads to director of reliever airports, responsible for the operation and maintenance of its six general aviation airports in the Twin Cities metro area: St. Paul Downtown Airport, Flying Cloud Airport, Anoka County-Blaine Airport, Crystal Airport, Airlake Airport and Lake Elmo Airport. Gerads was promoted from assistant director of reliever airports, a position she’s held since 2007. The MAC also operates Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
ATTRACTIONS
Transwestern Real Estate Services announced the planned opening of a Soar N Bounce Trampoline and Adventure Park at Aurora Village Shopping Center, located at 1801 County Road 42 West in Burnsville; it’s the chain’s first Minnesota location.
CONSTRUCTION
Empirehouse, a Mounds View architectural glass and metal contractor, announced the retirement of General Manager James Bringle.
EDUCATION
Blaze Credit Union, Falcon Heights, announced it was honored with the Minnesota Credit Union Network’s 2025 Desjardins Youth Financial Education Award, recognizing Blaze’s initiatives promoting financial wellbeing of students in St. Paul Public Schools.
FINANCIAL SERVICES
U.S. Bank, Minneapolis, announced that it has united its Global Fund Services and Global Corporate Trust teams into a single Investment Services division led by Jay Martin, president of Investment Services. Martin has led Global Fund Services since joining the bank in 2023. Prior to joining U.S. Bank, he spent time at Citco, where he was head of operations within the Fund Services division. … Merchants Financial Group, Winona, announced the reelection of three directors to three-year terms: Molly Jungbauer, Hollstadt Consulting; John Killen, WinCraft; and James Rogers III, Mayo Clinic.
HEALTH CARE
Nura Pain Clinics, a subsidiary of the Capitol Pain Institute family of practices, announced the opening of a clinic at 707 Bielenberg Drive, Suite 108, Woodbury. Dr. Larry Studt, who joined Nura in 2024, will serve as the Woodbury clinic’s primary provider. Nura Pain Clinics also has locations in Edina and Coon Rapids.
HONORS
The U.S. Small Business Administration announced it has named ATEK Distribution, of Minneapolis, as SBA’s Minnesota Veteran-Owned Small Business of the Year. The business is owned by Jeffrey Anderson, who previously served as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. ATEK Distribution provides wholesale electrical construction materials, including wiring supplies, electrical light fixtures, EV charging stations, light bulbs, and solar and electrical power equipment. … Better Business Bureau of Minnesota and North Dakota announced this year’s winners of BBB’s Torch Awards for Ethics: Category 1 (1-2 employees): T & J Construction, Rogers; Category 2 (3-15 employees): Front Burner Accounting Services, Eden Prairie; Category 3 (20-99 employees): Paris Painting, Brooklyn Center; Category 4 (100+ employees): Coordinated Business Systems, Burnsville.
LAW
Faegre Drinker announced that Berglind Halldorsdottir Birkland has joined the firm’s litigation practice as counsel in the Minneapolis office. Birkland, a native of Iceland, also serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Minnesota Law School and chairs the International Business Law Section of the Minnesota State Bar Association.
REAL ESTATE
HomeServices of America, a Minneapolis-based Berkshire Hathaway franchised real estate agency, announced the following executive appointments: Alex Seavall, promoted from chief financial officer to chief financial and operations officer; and Candace Adams has been named executive vice president. Adams has served as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices New England Properties.
SERVICES
Restaurant Technologies, a Mendota Heights-based provider of cooking oil waste management to restaurants, announced it has named Matthew Micowski as chief financial officer, succeeding Bob Weil, who has held the position since 2007 and has transitioned to a strategic adviser position within the organization.
TECHNOLOGY
Calabrio, a Minneapolis-based provider of human resources software and services, announced it has appointed Frank Ciccone as chief revenue officer. Ciccone most recently was with Verizon, where he managed a $400 million collaboration and customer experience business.
EMAIL ITEMS to businessnews@pioneerpress.com.
Minnesota
Minnesota weather: Rain and storms possible late Thursday
Minnesota weather forecast. (FOX 9)
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – Most of Minnesota will be under a marginal risk of severe weather on Thursday, with rain and rumbles expected.
Thursday weather forecast
Local perspective:
A line of storms is expected to develop in west-southwest Minnesota on Thursday and grow in coverage as well as intensity tracking east into the early evening.
Large hail and damaging winds are the prevalent threats, but an isolated tornado is also possible along the line.
Isolated showers are expected to form in the western part of Minnesota on Thursday morning.
Rain chances in the Twin Cities area increase in the afternoon, as a line pushes through with possible thunderstorms.
Stay Sky Aware with FOX 9 for the latest.
The Source: This story uses information from the FOX 9 weather forecast.
Minnesota
TikToker’s ban from St. Paul parks lifted after appeal, agent says
A TikTok creator is no longer banned from parks in St. Paul, Minnesota, after appealing the city’s restriction, according to his agent.
St. Paul Parks and Recreation Director Andy Rodriguez earlier this month accused Josh Liljenquist of going to Pig’s Eye Park to “harass, record and profit from vulnerable adults residing there without said individuals’ permission.” Liljenquist, who is known for giving away food and cash in his videos, denied the allegation.
On Wednesday, Liljenquist’s agent shared a new letter from the city.
“Based on an evaluation of the facts of this situation as they were relayed during your appeal meeting, I will be rescinding your ban from our parks, effective immediately,” the letter from Rodriguez read.
Rodriguez also wrote the city expects “all residents and visitors to our parks to abide by the rules.”
“Our responsibility is to ensure park spaces remain safe, respectful, and accessible for all, and we appreciate your partnership in that effort,” the letter read.
Liljenquist told WCCO he has only recorded at Pig’s Eye Park once, and it was with the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office’s consent. He said he and his videographer always get consent from individuals they film, too.
Local organizations that work with people experiencing homelessness are split on Liljenquist’s impact. Sue Phillips, director of the Metropolitan Interfaith Council on Affordable Housing, said his content “is exploiting people experiencing homelessness/housing instability.” Feeding St. Paul founder Michael Brendale, on the other hand, said, “Josh has changed many lives, taken people off the streets.”
Liljenquist told WCCO he films his efforts instead of making them private in hopes of “inspiring other people to do it, showing that it doesn’t take a lot of money, it doesn’t take a lot of resources to go out there and do something for somebody.”
Minnesota
5 tornadoes confirmed in Friday’s outbreak in southeastern Minnesota
The National Weather Service confirmed that at least five tornadoes touched down in southeastern Minnesota on Friday, including four that hit Olmsted County. At least another three twisters were confirmed in southwestern Wisconsin.
The NWS was still analyzing data and other information to determine if more tornadoes occurred in the area.
The storms started Friday afternoon, with the first tornado touching down north of Sargeant in Mower County around 1:45 p.m. The short-lived EF0, with top wind speeds of 80 mph, traveled about 3 miles northeast into rural Dodge County near the unincorporated town of Oslo. It lasted for about five minutes in total, the weather service says, and caused minor damage to a grain silo before dissipating.
A new tornado formed a few minutes later, less than a mile away south of Oslo. The storm was also considered an EF0, with wind speeds around 80 mph. Lasting less than 10 minutes, it traveled 4 miles into Olmsted County, causing light damage to farm outbuildings and trees.
The line of storms seemed to pick up intensity as it entered Olmsted County.
Around 2:17 p.m., the EF2 tornado that would later hit Marion Township first touched down just northeast of Stewartville. The weather service estimates that the twister had wind speeds of about 130 mph and traveled nearly 10 miles northeast, before dissipating around 2:31 p.m. Multiple homes were severely damaged with roof removal and partially collapsed exterior walls.
An EF1 tornado was also confirmed to have hit near Potsdam around 2:30 p.m.
The first portion of the tornado was weak, the weather service said, with mainly EF0 damage. On the second portion of the 12-mile track, the tornado intensified to produce approximately 100 mph winds with tree and farm outbuilding damage. It lifted around 2:54 p.m.
A second EF2 tornado was confirmed in Olmsted County around 2:46 p.m. about 5 miles east-northeast of Viola and traveled about 7.5 miles, ending in Wabasha County, a few miles south of Plainview, around 3 p.m. Maximum wind speeds were around 125 mph. The storm affected mainly rural areas and damaged trees and outbuildings. One farmhouse lost a roof and a garage roof, the weather service said.
No injuries were reported in the Minnesota-Wisconsin outbreak.
Friday was a historic day for the NWS La Crosse office, which issued 26 tornado warnings – the most for any one day since the office opened in 1995.
-
World3 minutes agoGoogle puts AI agents at heart of its enterprise money-making push
-
News9 minutes agoSenate Adopts GOP Budget, Laying the Groundwork to Fund ICE and Reopen DHS
-
Politics15 minutes agoU.S. Seizes Second Tanker Carrying Iranian Oil
-
Business21 minutes agoHow We Cover the White House Correspondents’ Dinner
-
Science27 minutes agoRFK Jr. Says His Department Advises All Children to Get Measles Vaccine
-
Health33 minutes agoYouth Suicides Declined After Creation of National Hotline
-
Lifestyle51 minutes agoYou’re Invited! (No, You’re Not.) It’s the Latest Phishing Scam.
-
Education57 minutes agoOhio State Details Relationship that Led to Former President Walter Carter Jr.’s Resignation