Golden Valley & West Metro

There aren't any major municipal headlines specifically out of Golden Valley, Crystal, or New Hope today, but a broad air quality alert directly impacts our outdoor plans. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has issued an alert for eastern Minnesota as Canadian wildfire smoke pushes the Air Quality Index (AQI) into the red category, which is unhealthy for all residents. If you're spending time at Theodore Wirth Park or walking the trails around Bassett Creek, consider keeping it light or moving your exercise indoors until the smoke clears.

Minneapolis

The 87th Minneapolis Aquatennial is officially underway, having kicked off at the Model Sailboat Pond with more than three dozen events planned over the next nine days. Be sure to check out the full schedule so you don't miss the signature Torchlight Parade on July 22. In local business and development news, Minneapolis City Council Member Elliott Payne announced Friday that the all-ages music venue The Pilllar will stay open after a "massive" wave of community support reversed its sudden closure. Meanwhile, city leaders are considering asking tax-exempt property owners to help fill municipal budget gaps, and workers at a Minneapolis Kings Road Merch warehouse claim Sony abruptly shut down their facility just hours before scheduled union negotiations.

St. Paul

Police are actively investigating a deadly shooting in St. Paul's Frogtown neighborhood that left one person dead and two others injured early Saturday morning around 4:30 a.m., with no arrests made yet. In city infrastructure news, St. Paul officials are suspending repairs for hundreds of street lights stripped of their copper wire, citing severe budget constraints. Across the river in Ramsey County courts, the top fugitive in the sprawling Feeding Our Future fraud investigation made her first court appearance Friday afternoon after more than four years on the run.

Local Sports

The WNBA-leading Minnesota Lynx are on fire, securing their fifth straight win with a 101-93 victory over the Portland Fire at home. Kayla McBride was the star of the night, dropping 24 points and cementing her spot in the top 20 of the WNBA's all-time career scoring list. Over at Target Field, the Twins had a mixed series against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field; Ryan Jeffers hit a crucial three-run homer to secure a 5-2 win on Friday, but the team fell 6-2 on Saturday as the Cubs' Nico Hoerner tied a career-high with four hits.

Weather

Those hazy, orange-tinted skies you’re seeing over the metro are expected to stick around through the weekend. The heavy wildfire smoke drifting down from Canada has pushed our local AQI into the red (unhealthy) category, prompting state officials to urge everyone to limit prolonged outdoor exertion. A neighboring advisory is also in effect for Wisconsin through Monday, meaning the smoky conditions are firmly parked over the Upper Midwest.

Minnesota Statewide

The ongoing Canadian wildfires continue to cause ripple effects across the state, from the poor air quality in the metro to the northern border, where the Canadian Air Force recently had to rescue Minnesota teenagers trapped by the blazes. Up in Ely, the mandatory Boundary Waters closure is dealing a heavy economic blow to local businesses right during their peak summer tourist season. On a lighter note, the nonprofit Soles4Souls is hosting a fundraiser at the Mall of America to provide proper footwear for the more than 10,000 kids experiencing homelessness in the Twin Cities ahead of the new school year.