Second public hearing set on Breakaway music festival
Will it be second verse, same as the first, for the 2025 Breakaway music festival’s stint in St. Paul? Will sound volumes be lowered to the point that the electronic dance music festival …
CHANGES CONTINUE AT HMC
Changes continue at the Hamline Midway Coalition (HMC). Jenne Nelson resigned as executive director on April 4 and will continue serving as the legislative aide for the Ward 4 office, which she had …
Privratsky, staff working through August
My name is Matt Privratsky and I’m your new interim councilmember. I might have met and worked with some of you when I was the legislative aide in this office from 2018-2021. Either way, …
Spring musical cast and crew shine
‘The Little Mermaid’ on stage The Como Park Theater Department performed the adapted musical version of Disney’s The Little Mermaid during the weekend of April 26-27. Saturday …
Discoveries at any age during STEAMquest
I’ve been discovering plenty of new things to experience lately. Funny how a previously unknown author or new jazz recordings can alter one’s state of being. So too, things overlooked, …
Principal reflects on growing collaboration
Hamline Elementary’s STEM Night with Capitol Region Watershed District was a great success! Students and families played environmentally-themed games and completed activities, including a …
Chamber directory

HOME & GARDEN
Homeowners experiment with paint colors, say local painters
Whale gray, dry sage and french press are some of the popular names of interior paint colors right now at Benjamin Moore, a paint company. Sid Triantafilou, a local painter and owner of Greco Linden …
Hayes Window expands into new location, offers storm windows
Lost your storm windows over the years? Have windows you can’t open anymore because they were painted shut? Does the glass rattle in the wind? These problems don’t mean that you need to …
A watershed moment
What is a watershed? What is our local watershed called? Where does it begin and end?  What is the largest watershed in the U.S.? According to board chair of the League of …
Recycle your left-over paint with PaintCare
Did you know there’s an option for recycling leftover paint in Minnesota? That’s right, recycling, not just disposing of leftover paint. Since 2014, the non-profit PaintCare has been …
Events - Apr 2024
MASTER GARDENER PLANT SALE MAY 18 Ramsey County Master Gardeners will host their annual plant sale May 18, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Aldrich Arena, 1850 White Bear Ave N, Maplewood. This new …
Opinion
We recognize a non-profit of the month with $1,000
Minnesota can jokingly be called the “land of 10,000 nonprofits” for all the charitable organizations calling our state home. And the Midway can feel like the epicenter of them; our …
World class education starts at home
Education opens a world of infinite possibilities. It serves as a gateway to discovery, encouraging children to explore new ideas and unlock their full potential. Beyond the acquisition of knowledge, …
Waiting for birth of new star in 2025
“Today too, amid so much darkness, we need to see the light of hope and to be men and women who bring hope to others.” - Pope Francis “I think a hero is any person really intent on …
Racism takes aim at community members in newspaper
What does racism look like? I saw it in April when I received an envelope filled with clips of nearly every person of color who made our edition of the Monitor that month. Among them were our regular …
Parental Bill of Rights may harm queer youth
On March 5, I attended a meeting for the House Health Finance and Policy Committee. I decided to attend because bill HF22 was on the agenda. HF22 is a proposed bill to establish a Parental Bill of …
Living 50+
‘Good Ancestors’ recognized by Elders Climate Action
The Twin Cities chapter of Elders Climate Action honored three local activists with its annual Good Ancestor award, recognizing their legacies of community-centered climate action. Elders Climate …
Natural organic reduction
Live On Minnesota is working to become the first provider of Natural Organic Reduction (NOR) in the state of Minnesota. Also known as “human composting,” NOR is the safe and peaceful …
Stop and smell the roses Rob McHattie grows
Rob McHattie tries to have as many people as possible stop and smell the roses that he grows.  The St. Paul gardener has raised tea roses for many years, and he shares the blooms with …
Seniors write rich stories
“What do you do when your car is stolen?” Milan Mockovak, 93, wrote in his story, “Life As We Know It.”  “A published story was on my bucket list,” he …
She helps others meet the trees
  Last year, D10 Como Community Council received a grant from the Saint Paul Audubon Society to support a new initiative for the Como Park Tree Trek. For several years, the Tree Trek …
Rebuild, Repair, Recycle
Rethinking I-94 debate renewed
The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) continues to work on draft recommendations for the Rethinking I-94 project. After a long and contentious virtual meeting in January 2025 to discuss …
Minnesota nights getting warmer
The Twin Cities Meteorological Society’s 4th Annual Minnesota State of the Climate event, held at the Anpétu Téca Education Center in Roseville, had a special focus on …
Rethinking I-94 discards fill-in-the-trench options
Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) recommendations headed to the Rethinking I-94 project policy advisory committee on Jan. 17 are provoking debate. Recommendations to set aside at-grade …
Solstice and seeds in 2025
Happy New Year! The winter solstice, harbinger of the beginning of astronomical winter in the Northern Hemisphere and sunlight curmudgeon, has passed. It’s a good thing we have such Grand …
Soccer groups help clean up
Allianz Field opened its doors in 2019. Since then, both soccer supporters and Minnesota United FC have organized neighborhood cleanups around the Hamline-Midway neighborhood. The longest-running of …

11 AWARDS FOR TMC PUBLICATIONS 2025

At the 158th annual Minnesota Newspaper Association Convention, TMC Publications earned 11 wards. Accepting them in person were (left to right) Tesha M. Christensen, Jan Willms and Terbuto Ochothow. …
School & Sports
2024 SPPS graduation rates on par with 2019
Seventy-seven percent of Saint Paul Public Schools (SPPS) students graduated in four years in 2024, according to new data released by the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) today. This is an 8 …
Como wrestler earns second in state
The stage was set. And it was a mighty big stage for Makiya May to perform on as a Como Park wrestler in the state tournament at the Xcel Energy Center in downtown St. Paul. Beyond being the first …
Broomball goes back to 1938 in St. Paul
From April 11-13, the American Broomball Alliance National Championships will be held at Bob Suter Legacy 20 Arena near Madison, Wis. Around 40 teams will compete in two Women’s divisions, two …
AP Government students visit D.C.
Eighteen seniors currently studying AP Government and AP Economics spent the final week of February in Washington D.C. as part of the national Close Up program. Close Up is a nonpartisan foundation …
Meet teacher, Midway resident Amanda Jagdeo
We hosted our annual Discovery Expo event on campus in March and it was a wonderful success. Hamline Elementary students from all grade levels visited Hamline University’s Anderson Center for …
Development
Road construction and maintenance updates in Ramsey County
Dale Street: Como Avenue to Highway 36 Traffic is reduced to one lane in each direction . Expect major delays the week of May 5 due to pavement removal operations. Flaggers are present in …
Project Home program coming to Bandana Square
Recently it was announced that   Interfaith Action of Greater Saint Paul  is the new owner of 1010 Bandana Blvd (the former Best Western).   The Walz-Flanagan …
REGIONAL ECONOMIC CONDITIONS
REGIONAL ECONOMIC CONDITIONS Erick Garcia Luna from the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis spoke about Regional Economic Conditions during the Midway Chamber Economic Development event on March 27, …
Learn about local businesses in this year’s directory
It’s April, which means the Midway Chamber’s annual directory is out. If you get the Monitor delivered to your house, the directory should have been included. If you’re a member of …
MILESTONES AND INVESTMENTS
If you’re standing at the corner of N. Asbury Street and Spruce Tree Drive, looking northwest to the Snelling/University intersection, you will be staring up at “The Calling,” …
Voices Against Violence
An ‘oppressive’ experience:’ 57 hearings, 80 court orders and 12 parenting time schedules
What do you do when 11 judges and referees, 20 therapists, 12 mediators, two parenting consultants (with 37 directives), one custody evaluator, and one guardian ad litem haven’t been able to …
Violence Free Minnesota issues statement on Burnsville Police and EMT domestic violence homicides
Violence Free Minnesota issued the following statement on Tuesday, Feb. 20 to call attention to the full circumstances around Shannon Cortez Gooden's murder of two police officers and an EMT in …
Domestic abuse victim jailed
During Domestic Violence Awareness Month, a Minnesota judge ordered a victim to jail for not forcing her daughter to see her father. Dani* was ordered to serve 30 days in jail on Oct. 2, 2023 or …
From their Standpoint
Thi Synavone came to the U.S. in 1979 as a Laotian refugee. After living in many states, her family settled in Minnesota in 1988. Synavone said that growing up, domestic and sexual violence was never …
CAUGHT BETWEEN
She lived in Minnesota for only five months and her daughter was born in Iowa, but Dani* has been dragged into family court in Minnesota nearly every one of the past 11 years by her ex-boyfriend. …
GOOD NEIGHBOR
‘Inside Senior Living’ docu-series explores aging
In an exciting development for the local television landscape, “Inside Senior Living,” a groundbreaking docu-series, has announced its partnership with PBS North. The series, set to …
Hamline-Midway
Changes continue at the Hamline Midway Coalition (HMC). Jenne Nelson resigned as executive director on April 4 and will continue serving as the legislative aide for the Ward 4 office, which she had …
The field for the Ward 4 council seat narrowed on April 30, 2025 when Cristin Incitti dropped out of the race. She has urged her supporters to vote for Molly Coleman. Also running is Cole Hanson . …
Como
Karl Erickson of Urban Ice Anglers took a quick video while he was out with students ice fishing on White Bear Lake and never expected it to go viral. But it did. Erickson used a video of car …
Have you ever walked across a frozen lake and gone ice fishing? For most Como Park students, the answer to that question about a classic Minnesota winter activity is “no.” However, a …
The second semester of the school year commenced the week of Jan. 27. While full-year courses continue, the new semester ushers in a fresh grading period. Semester-long courses mean that student …
Frogtown
Spring has arrived! “Meteorological spring” began March 1 and will last until May 3. The spring or vernal equinox kicked off on March 20 this year, marking when the equator receives the …
Is there anyone in the United States who has not been affected, indirectly or directly, by the changes enacted by our new President and his unelected sidekick? Farmers, consumers, doctors, …
It’s closing time for a Frogtown building that has housed numerous bars since 1916. The building at 981 University Ave., the northwest corner of University and Chatsworth, will be torn down to …
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 …
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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