Behind the lost-and-found at the State Fair 🎡

Plus: Debate stirs over a new pipeline in greater MN [Plus: Debate stirs over a new pipeline in greater MN] View this email as a [web page]( [The Minnesota Star Tribune](   [Essential Minnesota logo] ESSENTIAL MINNESOTA [Essential Minnesota logo] ESSENTIAL MINNESOTA Good morning, Minnesota! I recently learned that the gopher isn't officially our state ... anything. We don't even have a state mammal 🦌 On to the news 📢 [Eder Campuzano] By Eder Campuzano TODAY’S TOP STORIES - [Owatonna couple speaks out after state trooper killed their daughter]( - [Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan open to running for governor in 2026]( - [Despite housing shortage, Grand Marais resists new townhome project]( - [Ramstad: For the first time in five years, MSP is seeking new restaurants and shops]( - [Eating our own words: Our food writers return to the fair and reassess these low-ranking new foods](   Bueller? Bueller? Bueller? Ayrton Breckenridge/The Minnesota Star Tribune Take a picture of your kids when you get to the Minnesota State Fair. The reasons are twofold: It'll become a treasured memory, of course. But it might also help you find the tots should they wander off amid the tens of thousands of bodies that yearly descend on the fairgrounds. That's one of several tips that State Fair police and workers at the lost-and-found office relayed to reporter Rachel Hutton to help you ensure a quick reunion with your watches, your wallets and purses, or your children. Hutton went deep inside the fair's recovery efforts for today's main story: last year alone, about 1,800 items were turned in. Blaire Huneke, the fair's marketing and guest services supervisor, said people regularly turn in phones and full wallets. Sometimes, they'll turn in a single sock. “A lot of people think that if they lost something small, it’s not even worth trying to find it," Huneke said. "But Minnesota Nice is real, and people will turn in a lot of things that they find.” Don't get any funny ideas: You can't just roll up to the lost-and-found office every other day and claim you lost a wallet full of $50 bills. Huneke said fair staff ask visitors for a detailed description of the lost item, and where they last remember having it. Here are a few tips from Huneke: 1. Tuck a note in your wallet or between your phone and its case with a contact number if found. 2. Make sure your phone’s location tracking is on. 3. The most detailed description you can give of a lost item — brand, size, identifying marks — can help staff search for it. Hutton has all of the [details about the State Fair lost-and-found office here.](     GOING OUT - [The Big Gigs: 10 best concerts to see in the Twin Cities this week]( - [Ojibwe ‘Star Wars’ arrives in Minnesota theaters this week]( - [Tickets go on sale this week for Of the Trees, Emily King and Jose James](   [Share this newsletter with friends]( Do you enjoy Essential Minnesota? Encourage your friends and family to [sign up](. You also can share it using the links below.   Debate flares over proposed pipeline in Minnesota farm country Safety and environmental concerns have been top-of-mind for regulators and residents of the state's westernmost counties since Summit Carbon Solutions proposed a pipeline through a slice of Minnesota farm country. Supporters say the pipeline, which would carry carbon dioxide from an ethanol plant just over the North Dakota border, would help the state cash in on mandates for low-carbon fuels. Opponents are skeptical the project would help the environment and have pointed to ruptures in similar projects in other states. Walker Orenstein and Chris Vondracek have the [story about the debate over the pipeline here](. Glen Stubbe/The Minnesota Star Tribune MORE FROM THE MINNESOTA STAR TRIBUNE - [Worker fatality leads to $621,000 safety fine for Rosemount-based trucking firm — the largest in Minnesota history]( - [Workers at Minneapolis’ May Day Cafe are raising money to buy it as a co-op]( - [Highly touted Wisconsin recruit Amari Allen has official visit with Gophers on Thursday]( A SHORT TIME FROM NOW IN A CINEMA NOT TERRIBLY FAR AWAY ... Handout A few weeks back, we told you about the Minnesotans involved in the Ojibwe-language dub of "Star Wars: A New Hope," then coming soon to a theater near you. Well, "soon" has become "this weekend," and we've got a list of every theater in the Twin Cities and beyond that's screening the film, courtesy of ace reporter Rachel Hutton. Anton Treuer, pictured above, voiced a few stormtroopers in the film. Where to watch "Star Wars" in the Twin Cities Oakdale Cinema, 5677 N. Hadley Av., Oakdale. Southbridge Crossing Cinema, 8380 Hansen Av., Shakopee. Where to watch in greater Minnesota Duluth Cinema, 300 Harbor Drive, Duluth. Parkwood Cinema, 1533 Frontage Road N., Waite Park. For more information, see [marcustheatres.com](. The Ojibwe-language dub of “Star Wars” will also be available on Disney+. IN OTHER NEWS - [Minnesota minimum wage to rise to $11.13 per hour, a 26% increase for some]( - Minnesota Reformer - [Police and prosecutors in Minneapolis grapple with youth ‘incapable’ of committing crime]( - MinnPost - [Stillwater starts school year with a familiar issue: bus headaches]( - Pioneer Press     THE MINNESOTA GOODBYE u/Misteruilleann via Reddit What's happening between these two men? Wrong answers only. Reddit user Misteruilleann shared this frame of St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey facing off in front of the MPR tent at the Minnesota State Fair yesterday, a fanciful image that brings to mind all sorts of zany possibilities. Are they debating which city has the best dive bars? Who can hold their breath longer? Who gets to wrestle the fairgoer behind Carter for that rockin' BB-8 backpack? Send us your ideas: essential@startribune.com. Thanks for reading Eder Campuzano, reporter Patrick Condon, editor     [Premium digital access] GET IMMEDIATE ACCESS TO EVERY STORY [Premium digital access] GET IMMEDIATE ACCESS TO EVERY STORY [Subscribe]( SHARE THIS NEWSLETTER [Email]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Manage email preferences]( • [Subscribe to Star Tribune]( • [Privacy Policy]( [Unsubscribe from this newsletter]( [Manage]( your preferences | [Opt Out]( using TrueRemove™ Got this as a forward? [Sign up]( to receive our future emails. 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