Welcome back to The Flyover, your daily digest of important, overlooked, and/or interesting Minnesota news stories.
State Senate Wonders Why Met Council Still Exists
The Office of the Legislative Auditor has released a new performance report on the Met Council's Southwest light rail extension, and wow, it’s a doozy. The main takeaways include a lack of consideration regarding cost variances (the project is currently $1.6 billion over budget), a lack of communication with businesses impacted by construction, all-around improper documentation, and a lack of precautions regarding hazardous materials and public safety in work areas.
Reporter Matthew Blake recounts one example for MinnPost, the construction of a protective wall that more than doubled in price:
The Met Council estimated that erecting the wall would cost about $36.6 million. But the chief contractors on the light rail project, Lunda Construction Co. and McCrossan, said it could be as much as $82.6 million.
So, the 15-person Met Council met to determine if Lunda and McCrossan’s more than doubling of the cost projection was a fair reflection of the work ahead. The result? The Met Council did not just approve the request, but gave a little more money to the contractors: a revised estimate of $83.4 million.
Met Council Chair Charlie Zelle testified to a legislative commission on Monday that the project would totally be up and running by 2027 (it was originally scheduled for 2018), and promised that it would stick to its 2024 budget of $2.86 billion. “You’ve come in so far over budget it’s like you don’t care,” said Sen. Calvin Bahr (R-East Bethel).
The OLA report stresses the need for more consistent documentation as well as outside oversight. Blake writes that both DFL and GOP legislators “openly” talked about dissolving the Met Council at the meeting, or assigning future projects to the Minnesota Department of Transportation.
How the MPD Failed Davis Moturi
When south Minneapolis resident Davis Moturi was shot by a John Sawchak in October 2024, Police Chief Brian O’Hara first described the incident as a neighborly dispute. It was not.
In this harrowing account by Cari Spencer for MPR, Moturi and his wife, Caroline, recount a year of harassment, racism, threats of violence, and actual violence leading up to Sawchak, a white man, shooting Moturi, a Black man, in the neck. According to court docs, Moturi called the police 19 times over the course of the year. “It made me feel like I was in some sort of movie set in the '50s, where the Klan is attacking this Black guy and his family and the police do nothing,” he says.
Sawchak has a history of violence, with a rap sheet going back two decades. That includes an MPD tire-slashing conviction, multiple restraining orders, and an active warrant for his arrest for beating an elderly neighbor. Moturi would also eventually learn that previous homeowners, a Black family, had moved after receiving racist threats from Swachak. He emailed officials for any help—City Council member Andrea Jenkins spoke out, while Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey adamantly stood by O’Hara, who drew criticism for complaining to the media after receiving public pressure to act. Five days after the shooting, Swachak was arrested after a standoff with the MPD. He would later be found unfit to stand trial.
“Of course there’s some anger toward John, but most of the anger is directed toward the city and the police who did nothing—because they had a chance to stop it numerous times, and they chose not to,” says Moturi, who is still dealing with physical and mental trauma. “They just didn’t care.”
MN Sheriffs Now ICE Enforcers
Five sheriff’s offices—Cass, Crow Wing, Freeborn, Itasca, and Jackson County—have entered 287(g) agreements with ICE in recent months, pledging fealty to federal immigration agencies. They’ll also be helping identify candidates for deportation via questioning suspects and flagging people already in custody. In some cases, sheriff's offices would be able to act on civil immigration warrants issued by ICE.
Crow Wing County Sheriff Eric Klang tells Andrew Hazzard at Sahan Journal that while his office hasn’t finalized the details of its contract yet, he doesn’t think they’re “going to go rounding people up at beef farms or meat packing plants or Mexican restaurants.” (Never say never, folks.)
Not only is this a horrible way to build trust in a community, but as MN ACLU lawyer Benjamin Casper warns, sheriffs may find themselves in over their heads. MN AG Keith Ellison also notes in a statement that these kinds of agreements open counties up to lawsuits and civil rights violations, and that a “large numbers of people detained through 287(g)-related enforcement have committed only misdemeanors or traffic violations.”
Alan Page’s Sweet Side Project
At 79, Alan Page isn't just a retired Minnesota Supreme Court Justice and a Hall of Fame NFL athlete who has also been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. These days, he’s also an avid nature enthusiast and maple syruper. “The syrup that comes from our trees tastes very sweet with just a hint of butterscotch,” he tells Alex Chhith in this super-cute Strib Q&A. “Maple syruping is ... certainly one of my favorite activities.”
When he’s not boiling sap with his grandkids at his cabin in Outing, Minnesota, Page says he enjoys kayaking and biking around the lake, and taking walks with friends. And that sounds like a pretty sweet life.
