AWARD WINNING NEWSPAPER

20 AWARDS EARNED IN 2023

TMC Publication's three newspapers earned a total of 20 awards at this year's Better Newspaper Contest through the Minnesota Newspaper Association. Congrats to the winners! NEWS1) First Place, Sports …
Garbage changes may be coming
St. Paul’s contract for organized garbage collection, serving 1-4 unit dwellings, expires Oct. 1. That may be months away. But in the scheme of city process, it is coming up fast.The St. Paul …
St. Paul asks for new sales tax
St. Paul’s proposed sales tax could be directed to several West Midway streets that are in need of repair. But the tax, which is pending action from the 2023 Minnesota Legislature, has a long …
10 guidelines for a strong, long and happy life
Some time ago, after suffering the shocking and unexpected loss of my still young husband, Martijn, while we were living in Europe, I experienced what is called traumatic grief. In addition to a year …
They won 2023 virtual ice castle contest
On Jan. 29, 2023, 14 Minecraft players descended upon the Victoria Theater Arts Center for their Ice Palace Building Competition, as part of the St. Paul Winter Carnival, and two winners emerged …
Como swimmers return to state meet
Swimmers return to State MeetThe success and depth of the Cougar boys’ swim team was evident in the pool and on the podium at the Section 4A Meet held on Feb. 24. Beyond the individual events, …
And the award goes to…
On Feb.25, 2023, the Midway Chamber of Commerce held its Annual Celebration. The event is always a fun night and this year’s theme, “Music & The Midway,” meant it would …
Trees can help poor air quality
“We all have angels guiding us… They look after us. They heal us, touch us, comfort us with invisible warm hands… What will bring their help? Asking. Giving thanks.” ~ Sophy …
Plan it
HMONG AMERICAN PLAY OPENS MARCH 31Local Hmong American playwright and theater artist Katie Ka Vang returns to Theater Mu for the world premiere of her and Melissa Li’s musical, …
Changing of the guard at state fair
After more than 50 years with the Minnesota State Fair and 27 as CEO, Como resident Jerry Hammer will retire this spring. Stepping in as CEO will be Renee Alexander. Alexander has more than 20 years …
POLLS
Opinion

PPGJLI launches 100 black authors campaign

Planting People Growing Justice Leadership Institute (PPGJLI) is launching the 100 Black Authors campaign. The campaign will promote cultural preservation through the arts and humanities and build an …

Chamber directory

Rebuild, Repair, Recycle
Project at former school buildingA Merriam Park development project, which hit some delays, is moving ahead. The St. Paul Planning Commission Jan. 6 approved a conditional use permit and variances …
Last year, Christmas was looking pretty bleak for the Eugene Johnson family.Johnson fell off a second story building onto a fence, and was hospitalized for weeks. Then he spent time in a wheelchair. …
By Patricia OhmansFrogtown GreenAre you concerned about news of bird die-offs, and even extinctions? Turn off the lights! That’s one of two simple things you can do, according to experts at the …
Aging Well
• Chair Yoga (Thursday 10:30 a.m.) and Arthritis-Friendly Exercise (Tuesday and Thursday 1:30 p.m.) meet until March 9. Join any time, in-person and on Zoom.• Solo Seniors Resource Group - …
HyggeCertainly, the long, cold, dark Minnesota winters can spark a melancholia for some. Yet frigid temperatures and spare daytime hours can also create the mood to hibernate, as other creatures of …
Ever been accused of having a thin skin? When it comes to maintaining proper body temperature, this old adage is no joke. As we age, our metabolic rate decreases and our skin literally thins. Often, …
School & Sports
Care packages for Street Works
For their January volunteer project, Murray Middle School National Junior Honor Society students heard guest speakers from Street Works, a local organization that works with homeless youth. The …
Como girls set St. Paul City record
With another undefeated season in the St. Paul City Conference in the books, the Como girls basketball team earned their ninth consecutive conference championship.The last time the Cougars lost a …
Inspired
Nine months before Rosa Parks, Claudette Colvin refused to give up her seat on the bus to a White passenger. She was 15. Youth Performance Company (YPC)’s “Inspired by Claudette & …
Scholarships available
When St. Paul Rotary celebrated its 100th Anniversary 13 years ago, the Club created an endowed scholarship program to send a St. Paul high school student to college every year with a $20,000 …
Tips to help kids struggling with social media
Social media is a big part of young people’s lives. It has its benefits, and being able to keep in touch with friends and family remotely was one of the saving graces in the early stages of the …
Voices Against Violence
A SAFER APPROACH FOR CUSTODY CASES
Who’s right? Who’s wrong? And how does it affect the kids?Figuring out family dynamics in custody cases can be tricky, but the Battered Women’s Justice Project (BWJP) in St. Paul …
Emergency hotel stay project launches for victim-survivors of domestic violence
Estelle Brouwer, Executive Director of Women’s Advocates, announced today that starting in October they will be launching an emergency hotel stay project that provides short-term lodging for …
FAILED BY FAMILY COURT
Helpless and hopeless.That’s how Kelsey Kruse felt for years as she tried to co-parent with her ex and his wife, Brett and Sarah Hallow.And then one day, she got the call she was scared …
‘I RAN’
At 25, Sarah* doesn’t speak to her dad. And she points the finger squarely at him and how he treated her before and after her parents’ divorce.She knows that people often blame mom when a …
They took her children away
When Starr Jones* tells her story, people can’t believe this is happening in Minnesota. They can’t believe that the dad was investigated by child protection when their first daughter was …
Development
Streetwear at University and Dale
By TESHA M. CHRISTENSEN Urban29 lost its space at 804 E. Lake in Minneapolis when the building burned after the murder of George Floyd. Owner Joyce Sanders of Longfellow opened a pop-up location …
Judge allows new Taco Bell
A new Taco Bell restaurant is going up at 565 N. Snelling Ave., thanks to a successful court challenge by owner Border Foods. Neighbors were surprised that the longtime location was fenced off and …
One latte at a time
Frogtown has a coffee shop again.Over three years of planning culminated with the official opening of Flava Coffee and Cafe on Aug. 27, 2022 in the newly built Neighborhood Development Center at the …
Hamline Midway Library design released
Designs for a new Hamline Midway Branch library have been unveiled, as efforts to save the existing building continue. Designs and floor plans for Hamline Midway, Hayden Heights and Riverview …
Sherburne Collective aims for deeply affordable housing
Developers of a changing and complex Frogtown affordable housing proposal have been given more time to put things together. The St. Paul City Council, acting as the Housing and Redevelopment …
Hamline-Midway
The community is invited to a “then and now” slide show about Frogtown and the Midway area at Half Time Rec (1013 Front St.) on Saturday, Jan. 21 from noon to 3 p.m. There will be …
The quest for a spot on the National Register of Historic Places for the Hamline Midway Branch Library moved one step ahead on Nov. 15, 2022. Minnesota’s State Historic Preservation Review …
On a snowy Thursday night in November, neighbors walked, bussed, and drove to Hamline University for the Hamline Midway Coalition’s Annual Meeting. Speakers included Ramsey County Commissioner …
Como
The D10 Como Community Council would like to thank everyone who came out to our Feb. 4 Blizzard Breakfast at North Dale Rec Center. We couldn’t have done it without our partners at the Parks …
State swimmerCougar freshman Aleia Lueck entered the Section 4A girls swimming meet on Nov. 11, 2022 with a goal of setting a personal record in the 50-yard freestyle. When she touched the wall with …
There are some notable differences in William Kent Krueger’s latest book in the Cork O’Connor series, “Fox Creek.”His readers are familiar with Cork, the Irish-Anishinabe …
Frogtown
Over the past few summers, you may have noticed an increase in blooming wildflower gardens in our neighborhoods. Have you wondered where people get some of the seeds they need to make those gardens …
Frogtown GreenSince 2011, volunteers in the Frogtown neighborhood have been planting free trees in residents’ homes. Inspired by those efforts, and alarmed by recent declines in urban tree …
Frogtown’s historic Victoria Theater could be in the spotlight in 2024, as the long-awaited community arts center opens its doors. The theater leadership earlier this fall accepted $1 million …
Uprising & Unrest
Breathing new life into 27th and Lake
The 27th Avenue block between Lake and 31st Street bustled with community life. The block included a Latino night club, a popular Indian-Bangladeshi restaurant, and a community organization serving …
Learn to listen
Dr. Remi Douah is a listening presence at the “Say Their Names” Cemetery near George Floyd Square, just off East 37th Street between Chicago and Columbus avenues. He spends hours there …
Billboards at George floyd square show connection, unity
Two new artist-created billboards are up on the rooftops at George Floyd Square. Part of the Social Justice Billboard Project, “La Conneccion,” by Maria Cristina “Tina” …
Ribbon cut at Lloyd’s Pharmacy
Lloyd’s Pharmacy owner Jim Stage (back center) and his family officially cut the ribbon of their rebuilt pharmacy on Aug. 5, 2021. Celebrating with them were Mayor Melvin Carter (far left), …
Through Their Eyes
Origin of Racism
By JAN WILLMSFloyd Williams describes himself as a student of life, a revolutionary on many different levels: mentally, spiritually and socially. “I am definitely a person who is about my …
Help kids through trauma
Telling his own children about George Floyd’s death was one of hardest things Rev. Ronald Bell ever did Reverend Dr. Ronald Bell Jr. with his wife, Dr. Eboni Bell, and his two sons. Bell encouraged …
How to shrink the racial divide?
A conversation with the Truce Center’s Miki Lewis Miki Lewis is the founder and director of the Truce Center in St. Paul. (Photo by Margie O’Loughlin)[/caption] By MARGIE O’LOUGHLIN The first …
Through East African eyes
Unrest painful reminder of violence immigrants left behind Youth & Family Circle Eexecutive Director Mahmud Kanyare helps during a food give-away for hundreds of East African families at the …
HOME & GARDEN
NO MOW MAY
Let’s face it – your lawn, with all the mowing, raking, fertilizing, weeding, chemical treatment and watering it requires – is pretty much useless. At least that’s what a lot …
The clown colored house on the hill
Perched on a hill overlooking the Como Park Golf Course is a two-story vivid spruce green and fuchsia pink cube made of steel and glass. Situated on a bend in Lexington Ave, it’s impossible to …
Home renovations to age in place
At age 69, I was a “silver sneaker” poster child – fit and healthy, living on my own, fiercely independent and proud of it. Ironically, my main fitness exercise, avid fast walking …
Tiny spaces live large
Stephen Filing of Realty Group was looking to start a real estate business in 2014. He and his wife recently had a child and wanted to start something in the area. When Filing found the tiny office …
Why you should care about bugs
When I say I love insects, I’m normally met with a blank stare. Or worst case – a shudder. It’s not a very popular take, but with insect populations drastically declining across the …
George Floyd Square
GFS: Sowing seeds of solidarity
The little white house at 4600 Columbus Ave. S. is a typical south Minneapolis home. It has a garden out back and another out front, where every year in mid-July the Black-eyed Susans bloom. Its …
REMEMBERING GEORGE FLOYD
People gathered May 25-28, 2022 to commemorate the 2nd angelversary of George Floyd’s death. Others lost to police violence were remembered, and their families, who continue to push for change, …
A voice for justice
Becoming an activist in a worldwide movement for racial justice was beyond anything Angela Harrelson would have imagined for her life. But the murder of her nephew, George Perry Floyd, Jr. – or …
Did Minneapolis mislead, downplay public input on 38th & Chicago survey?
Since late 2020 Mayor Jacob Frey has made known his intent to reopen the intersection at 38th St. E and Chicago Ave. S. When interim design surveys were returned in spring 2021, he and city leaders …
The People's Closet makes fashion, political statement
Sometimes a revolutionary act is quiet, unseen. Sometimes it’s loud and worn on a shirtsleeve. At The People’s Closet at George Floyd Square, it’s a little bit of both.Born out of …
ELECTION RESULTS
WHAT THEY LIKE ABOUT THE MONITOR

We support the neighborhood by advertising in the Monitor

Supporting the Monitor is one of many ways for us to support our neighborhood. Our local newspaper allows families in the neighborhood to learn of Career Pathways Secondary School and our individualized learning paths for students in grades 6-12. We want our neighbors to know who we are as a school and why we are special. Our families are happy and kids stay with us. We want each student to feel wanted and known. The Hamline Midway neighborhood is part of our school's identity. Career Pathways recently invested $2,000,000 in remodeling our facilities as a commitment to the Hamline Midway neighborhood. We’re proud to be a part of it and represented in the Monitor. ~ Liz Lonetti of Career Pathways

Informative and interesting

Thank you for providing a great local paper serving Frogtown and adjacent neighborhoods. Your reporting and other content is always informative and/or interesting. Kudos on your excellent design/layout, as well. 

Paul Wehrwein, Frogtown

REVIEW

"Saint Paul Urban Tennis had a great experience working with Denis Woulfe, and we will definitely be doing business with your company again!"

We read it cover to cover

We just want to say thank you for providing such a wonderful community resource. We look forward to recieving the Monitor, and read it cover to cover every month. It is always chock full of interesting and informative articles. Thanks for turning this into our favorite paper!

Peace, Catrina & Serrily, Como

Newspaper connects us

Many thanks for all your work to get local stories and events out to our communities! I moved to the Como neighborhood in 2021 as a new homeowner during the pandemic, and I’ve felt so much more connected by having this awesome resource.

I always start reading with the intent to skim, but end up making it through the entire paper each time! The stories of connection and joy, coverage of Como HS, latest update on the historic library debate, and Mr. Giles’ column always leaves me feeling hopeful. As a public health worker during this time, it gives me relief to see the ads for vaccination, fact-based information about COVID-19, and the highlights of cultural wellness initiatives.

Thank you for all that you do!

Warmly,
Emily Regan

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