Minneapolis, MN
City of Minneapolis awards nearly $700,000 in first-ever Cultural Districts Arts Fund
The city of Minneapolis’ Arts & Cultural Affairs Department announced the awardees of its first-ever community arts fund awards, totaling $690,000, on Tuesday at a news conference at the Midtown Global Market. Seven districts in the city will benefit from the awards: 38th Street, Cedar Avenue South, Central Avenue, E. Lake Street, Franklin Avenue E., Lowry Avenue N., and W. Broadway.
“We’ve got art all throughout the city, in seven different cultural districts,” Mayor Jacob Frey said. “If you are seeing something you’re impressed by, there’s beautiful art that pops up on the street or there’s suddenly people dancing, that is probably the work of our incredible city team.”
There are three categories of awards: Cultural District Ambassadors ($15,000 each); Festival and Cultural Spaces Activation Program Awards (ranging from $15,500-$16,700), and Pop-Up Art & Cultural Activations Program ($5,000 each). Each district receives almost $100,000 spread across the three types of awards.
The Cultural Districts Arts Fund is the brainchild of Ben Johnson, the first-ever Arts & Cultural Affairs director. He started the job in March 2023, and in a little over a year created this initiative and secured funding for it. His department also set up a separate fund of a quarter of a million dollars for artists to take over vacant storefronts. Recipients will be announced mid-October.
Ashely Koudou, founder and CEO of Mango Day, a collective that works with artists, small businesses and entrepreneurs on marketing and branding, became the first-ever cultural district ambassador for Central Av.
She has a background in advertising and design. After joining Public Functionary Studios, an organization that helps people of color and marginalized artists’ grow and cultivate their art, she was inspired to work with artists on cultivating their businesses.
“With this [cultural district ambassador] initiative, we are able to take it to a different level,” Koudou said. “How do these artists show up in the consumer market?”
Johnson sees the awards as just the beginning.
Minneapolis, MN
What is a data center?
What exactly is a data center and why are so many being proposed across Minnesota? Professor Manjeet Rege, chair of Software Engineering and Data Science and director of the Center for Applied Artificial Intelligence at the University of St. Thomas, joins us to explain how these massive facilities store and process the world’s data and what the economic, environmental, and infrastructure questions are as Minnesota considers hosting more of them.
Minneapolis, MN
Minneapolis Ranked Among U.S. Cities With The Most People In Financial Distress
MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis is ranked among the American cities with the most people in financial distress nationwide, according to a recent analysis by WalletHub.
The personal finance website, which defines financial distress as having a credit account in forbearance or with deferred payments, looked at the country’s 100 largest cities without data limitations across nine metrics, including average credit score, change in bankruptcy filings year-over-year, and share of people with accounts in distress.
Minneapolis came in 44th on the list, between Stockton, California, at 43rd and Fresno, California, at 45th, according to the ranking.
Nationwide, the cities with the most people in financial distress were Chicago at No. 1, Houston at No. 2 and Las Vegas at No. 3, the ranking said.
“Getting out of the downward spiral of financial distress is no easy feat,” according to WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.
“You may get temporary relief from your lenders by not having to make payments, but all the while interest will keep building up, making the debt even harder to pay off. People who find themselves in financial distress should budget carefully, cut non-essential expenses, and pursue strategies like debt consolidation or debt management to get their situation under control.”
Read more from WalletHub.
Minneapolis, MN
Whitefish council creates proclamation in solidarity with city, citizens of Minneapolis
WHITEFISH, Mont. — The Whitefish City Council in February presented and signed a proclamation expressing solidarity with the city and citizens of Minneapolis.
The proclamation states that Whitefish mourns the loss of life that occurred in Minneapolis and stands in solidarity with its residents.
It reaffirms the city’s commitment to equal treatment under the law and emphasizes that peaceful protest is a fundamental American right.
The proclamation was supported by five of the six council members.
Mayor John Muhlfeld said the action was meant to reaffirm the city’s values.
“A mayoral proclamation that is supported by five of six City Council members supporting solidarity with the city and citizens of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and reaffirming our supportive, just, equal and welcoming community,” Muhlfeld said. “I think this is somewhat overdue. Our town’s been through a lot over the years, This is more importantly to reaffirm our values as a council with our community because we care deeply about you.”
Over the last year, Whitefish has faced criticism amid rising tensions surrounding the Department of Homeland Security.
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View the full proclamation below.
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