Minneapolis, MN
Roper: Doomsday docs aside, Minneapolis’ lush urbanity makes it a special place to call home
Minneapolis is magical in the summer.
I’ll be walking down a sidewalk and stumble into a passageway made of sunflowers. I’ll be biking up a protected bike lane and whiz past charming homes near quaint clusters of small businesses. I’ll be running around the lake and see sailboats framed beneath the downtown skyline. I’ll be at the annual alley dance party with my neighbors, a little toasted.
A passageway of sunflowers in south Minneapolis. (Eric Roper)
Lush urbanity. Postcards once called it the city of lakes and parks — maybe we should revive that slogan.
Bad news has been washing over Minneapolis lately, cramming people’s heads with scary visions of urban decay. For my own sanity, I need to reflect on why there’s arguably no better place to live.
I grew up in Manhattan, a concrete jungle. It is too dense, too big for my taste. Minneapolis occupies a sweet spot. Its plentiful residents and visitors support a constellation of lively districts — big and small, corporate and eclectic — surrounded by tree-lined historical neighborhoods that exude a small-town feel.
A snapshot of historical Minneapolis homes as seen on an evening bike ride. (Eric Roper)
There haven’t been this many people living in Minneapolis in half a century. It is not dead or emptying out, despite the implications of a recent primetime documentary.
And as with most places in Minnesota, it blossoms in the summer months.
Go stand in the middle of the Stone Arch Bridge at sunset, where a diverse hum of humanity crosses the Mississippi River surrounded by milling relics and plentiful new housing. This is not some aberration. Bop around sipping beers on an industrial chic strip like Quincy Street NE., or follow the enticing aromas down Nicollet Avenue’s Eat Street, and tell me this is some wasteland.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – A woman pleaded guilty to felony charges for her role in a massive criminal enterprise that billed the Medicaid program for “phantom” services.
Medicaid fraud guilty plea
What we know:
Nasro Takhal pleaded guilty Friday to two felony counts of aiding and abetting theft of Medicaid funds as part of a multi-million fraud scheme.
She was charged in 2024 with 17 felonies as part of a multi-year investigation by the state’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
The PITSTOP-66 investigation involved numerous Medicaid providers, including interpreters, drivers and clinics.
Prosecutors say they billed the Medicaid program for “phantom” services from 2019-2021.
They were accused of recruiting and exploiting Somali American residents in Faribault to seek medical care in the Twin Cities that they did not actually need or were ineligible to receive.
Prosecutors say they also used “invalid and fabricated” names to submit thousands of Medicaid claims for transportation and interpretation services covered by Medicaid, according to court records.
Takhal and other defendants targeted residents in the Faribault area because it was located less than 60 miles from most Medicaid providers in the Twin Cities. This allowed them to maximize their Medicaid reimbursements from UCare for non-emergency medical transportation.
Why you should care:
Non-emergency medical transportation and interpretation services are two of the 14 Medicaid services flagged as being vulnerable to waste, fraud and abuse.
Minnesota recently froze payments to those programs because of growing concerns about widespread Medicaid fraud in the state.
Conviction and consequences
What’s next:
Takhal will be sentenced in October. She will be ordered to pay more than $300,000 in restitution.
The Source: This story uses information from the FOX 9 investigative team.
WASHINGTON (TNND) — Yoga students in Minneapolis berated instructors for allegedly being complicit in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in recent video footage.
A video posted by a customer at the Yoga studio showed 13 women speaking sternly to two staffers in the lobby.
The students call on the instructors to condemn ICE.
“Give us answers, let’s go, let’s hear it – why are you being silent?” one person said.
“You’re not being berated – you’re being asked hard questions. Berating is what our neighbors are living through,” another person said.
Students ant the studio argued that the major corporation which owns the business had been staying silent on the ICE operations.
Eventually, the chain did put up anti-ICE signs in the studios, according to the New York Post.
Multiple anti-ICE protests have occurred across the country, especially at its epicenter in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Two demonstrators were killed while protesting ICE operations under the Trump administration. The FBI is investigating both instances.
Border czar Tom Homan announced this week that federal agents in Minnesota would be reduced by 700.
“While we had our differences, one thing was clear, we all committed to public safety for all who live in the Twin Cities,” Homan told reporters. “We have made significant progress under the direction of President Trump, working with state and local officials here in Minnesota, and I expect that to increase in the coming weeks.”
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