Welcome back to The Flyover, your daily digest of important, overlooked, and/or interesting Minnesota news stories.
So About That Big Strib Music Package...
Oooo baby, we love a "get 'em talkin'" list, and Strib music guys Jon Bream and Chris Riemenschneider deliver in a big way today with this rundown of the 53 "essential" venues in the Twin Cities.
I actually think the list is pretty good! Now, it was written by two—in the kindest and most loving way possible—gentlemen of a certain age, and it does reflect those, um, not-20-something proclivities. My gripes would mostly be that the grading system favors genteel, clean venues with higher ticket prices and more established artists; it also prioritizes those with lots of parking and lots of seating. (Even at the Armory, readers are informed it's "worth the upgrade to sit in the balcony." The floor is just fine!)
As a result, the "top five" is made up of the Ordway, Berlin, Xcel Energy Center, Duluth's Bayfront Festival Park, and (surprising virtually no one) First Avenue. Meanwhile, some of Racket's favorite rooms in town—Amsterdam Bar & Hall, Pilllar Forum, the new Cloudland, and even 7th St Entry—can't get out of B territory. The Eagles #34 doesn't make the cut, and also, where's Mort's?! We'd agree that Cedar Cultural Center is woefully underrated, though, and U.S. Bank Stadium undoubtedly deserves its "bottom five" designation.
The Entry topped a similar-style list that Racket's own music guy, Keith Harris, oversaw at City Pages in 2018. Here's what he wrote...
It has just one-sixth the capacity of the adjacent First Avenue Mainroom but all the magic. No club in town matches the Entry’s grimy charm, and its schedule is crammed full of veteran cult acts, budding local artists, and buzz-worthy newbies who are just a tour away from hitting the big room next door.
When I reached him via the work chat for his thoughts on these kinds of venue-ranking endeavors earlier today, Harris had this to say: "The issue with this idea is that lots of venues really aren't comparable—they're good for what they are, and the 'problems' with them are what makes them unique. Not the Fine Line though, it sucks."
Anyway, here's a gift link! Go argue about it amongst yourselves.
Why HCMC and U of M Fellows Are Organizing
Doctors, famously, make pretty good money—$277,000 on average, per the 2024 Medscape Physician Compensation Report. Residents, on the other hand—med school grads who are getting more specialized training in order to become a licensed physician, like J.D. and Turk from Scrubs—make somewhere between $55,000 and $85,000 a year.
And as Dr. Chrissy Grech, a third-year internal medicine resident at Hennepin County Medical Center, tells MinnPost's Deanna Pistono, once you factor in the grueling hours, that's “about minimum wage—like $10 an hour.”
Pistono spoke with several residents and fellows at HCMC and the University of Minnesota Medical Center Residency Program to learn more about the factors, including low wages, that have led them to organize. Supermajorities of both groups working at both health care systems have filed with the Committee of Interns and Residents (CIR/SEIU) to unionize, and while contract specifics haven't been hashed out yet, much of what these workers discuss with Pistono seems like it would be on the table: the low pay, the 90-hour weeks.
As Dr. Kaitlin McLean, an internal medicine and pediatrics resident at the U of M, tells MinnPost, residents and fellows are able to better take care of patients, “when we’re able to take the best care of ourselves.”
More Mess in St. Paul
And we're not talkin' about the seemingly endless trash situation—that seems to have been straightened out, at least for now.
No, remember the situation with former legislative aide Jon Berry? In 2024, St. Paul City Council Member Cheniqua Johnson recommended Berry, a friend with a background in marketing, as someone who could serve as a legislative aide for Council Member Anika Bowie. He was hired, then fired months later, and then hired again for a City Hall executive assistant gig—this time by Johnson, his bud.
Along the way, Bowie sent several emails in which she alluded to Berry's "unauthorized spending" and "concerns about his ability to maintain professional objectivity and integrity,” among other things. Now, reports Frederick Melo at the the Pioneer Press, Berry is suing the city and Bowie, accusing them of illegally disclosing his private personnel data. He also accuses both Bowie and the city of a single count of defamation and a single count of negligence. Here's more from Melo:
Bowie said Berry was issued an employee improvement plan on Aug. 12, and he failed to meet expectations.
“This statement is false and defamatory,” reads the lawsuit. “Mr. Berry was never issued an improvement plan by Councilmember Bowie. Accordingly, he never failed to meet any such improvement plan.”
She also wrote in her email that there were rumors of a prior intimate relationship between Berry and Johnson, and that the relationship had been mentioned to her “by mutual acquaintances in Councilmember Johnson’s presence.”
“No such conversation, in the presence of Councilmember Johnson, took place and, more importantly, Councilmember Johnson and Mr. Berry never had an intimate relationship,” reads the lawsuit.
Like we said: mess! Insert Oprah "so what is the truth?" meme here.
Where Is Edwardo?
God help me, I love local TV news.
You will not believe the overwrought treatment KSTP gives this report about a life-sized, 300-pound metal bull statue that was stolen from outside of The District Edina sometime within the last few days. It's incredible. I laughed out loud at, then typed out and then deleted, several quotes from the piece below, because I really think you have to watch it in full to get the experience.
The text that accompanies the video doesn't do it justice, so I'm sorry, you'll just need to watch KSTP's full segment below. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Happy Wednesday, everyone.
