strong local economy : Buzz

A recent analysis from the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality shows that Minnesota boasts the best healthcare system in the country, according to the Star Tribune.

The state’s high marks came in the areas of medical clinics, hospitals, and nursing homes.

“Overall, Minnesota ranks third for care of patients with acute conditions, seventh for chronic care and 11th for preventive care,” the Star Tribune story states.

Jennifer Lundblad, president of the nonprofit organization Stratis Health, is quoted saying, “For more than five years we've had an intense collaboration among providers, health plans, state officials and others to tackle both quality and cost issues," adding, "That's hard work ... and this report confirms where we're doing well and where we still need to improve.”

Lifestyle magazine Whole Living recently showcased Minneapolis as a top destination spot, in a July/August feature titled "10 reasons to love Minneapolis."
 
The article singled out Red Stag Supperclub and Spoonriver as must-visit eateries, with a nod toward Peace Coffee for its Fair Trade focus and cold press blend.
 
For activities, the magazine recommended hiking through Minnehaha Park, renting a kayak on Lake Calhoun, and visiting the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden near the Walker Art Center.
 
Paper Hat, Design Collective, and Moss Envy were singled out as top shopping locations, and rounding out the list was the Radisson Plaza as an eco-friendly place to stay.

A Reuters article titled, “Cities' efforts to make exercise easier pays off,” calls attention to Twin Cities’ efforts to help residents get in shape.
 
Fitness results in part from lifestyle and environmental supports, it states, adding that the American College of Sports Medicine's 2012 American Fitness Index (AFI), which ranks the country’s 50 healthiest cities, supports that theory.
 
Minneapolis/St. Paul has jumped to the top of the list for the second year in a row thanks to higher rates of physical activity.
 
The story quotes Walter Thompson, who chairs the AFI board: "When I say Minneapolis ranked No. 1, people give me an 'are you kidding me' kind of look,” who adds, "Between November 1 and April 1 they have cold and snow, but they've addressed that."
 
It has to do with having plenty of gyms and government investment in parks, he says in the story.
 
 

 

According to a Scarborough Research report, Minneapolis is among the top microbrew-drinking cities in the country.
 
About seven percent of adults had a microbrew within the past 30 days, putting it at 10th in the nation, tied with five other cities, including San Diego, Tucson, Austin, and Hartford.
 
At the top of the list were Denver and Portland, which reported that 13 percent of their adult population had sampled a microbrew within the past month.
 
The report notes: "Microbrews, or craft beers, are a terrific example of how localism has become trendy." Brands would do well to capitalize on the consumer loyalty that comes with rooting for the home team, or visiting neighborhood hot spots, the research firm suggests.

Connect Minnesota, a public-private partnership designed to accelerate technology in the state, released a report noting that Minnesota is strong when it comes to telework, with 22 percent of Minnesotans doing some form of it. That represents a larger share of employees than any other state surveyed.
 
The report also noted that the average teleworker in Minnesota saves nearly 2,000 miles per year on their commute, which lowers CO2 emissions and can boost a better work/life balance.
 
William Hoffman, state program manager for Connect Minnesota, says that the results of the report show that availability and adoption of high-speed broadband has wide-ranging economic and social impacts on how Minnesotans work and live. He adds: "As we continue to see providers expand their service areas to employers and employees, I believe we will continue to see telework levels increase across the state."

The Washington Post recently featured the Minneapolis restaurant the Bachelor Farmer, in its lifestyle section.

Writer Tom Sietsema describes the Nordic-themed restaurant as “homespun and stylish.”

“Cheery blue-and-white awnings welcome diners to the sprawling corner property,” along with an underground cocktail lounge that’s known as the Marvel Bar, the story states.

“Asked to define Minnesota cooking, Eric Dayton says it revolves around the simple use of a few ingredients, preferably local. “There’s a humility to the cooking” in his state, he says. The description sums up my meal in his restaurant, where nothing shouted “Look at me!” but everything reveled in good taste, right through dessert.”  

The internationally touring 48 Hour Film Project, which gives filmmakers a deadline of two full days to put together a movie, included Minneapolis in its 125-city tour this year, KSTP reports. 

As a part of the project, filmmakers had to complete everything from the writing to the editing of a movie within 48 hours, the story states.   
 
Teams also had to work with certain genres and props and some scripted dialogue.

Standout work will be screened at the 48 Hour Film Project Filmapalooza in 2013.

Minnesota Recruiters, a network of recruiters and HR professionals, released its annual hiring and jobs survey, yielding some insights into the current jobs scene.
 
The survey found that hiring continues to be strongest with jobs that require a two- or four-year degree, and that moderate hiring is the theme. IT hiring seems to be a stress across the board, the report notes, and the results are similar to national trends.
 
Marketing continues to be in the "fewest jobs" category, but the interactive side of the industry is very strong. The most jobs tend to be in IT, sales, finance, and engineering.

Renowned urban expert Charles Landry recently spent time in Minneapolis and St. Paul, and shared numerous thoughts on how citizens and developers could make the area into a world-class region.
 
As noted in a recent article in MinnPost, Landry spoke with more than 1,000 people during his seven-day visit, and gave advice on how to increase appreciation for diversity, view community projects in a broader context, and rally behind small-scale efforts.
 
Writing about Landry in MinnPost, Erik Takeshita noted that the Twin Cities show up on many national "Top 10" lists, but that we shouldn't get complacent. "So, as we bask in the glory of national kudos for best this and best that, let's rededicate ourselves to making sure Minneapolis-St. Paul continues to have a place high on those lists for many years to come," he wrote.
 
For more on Landry's visit to the metro and his insights on our urban landscape, check out Camille LeFevre's recent article in The Line.

A recent Star Tribune story highlights University Grove, which it calls the state's "own mid-century architecture laboratory."

The New York Times has dubbed it "an architectural time capsule of modern America."

University Grove is a part of a new history crawl of sorts next month.

"University Grove, tucked into a corner next to the University of Minnesota's St. Paul campus, was sort of an early version of a planned community," the Star Tribune story states.

More recently, there's been rising interest in building from this time period.

 

The Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal recently noted a positive trend in the economy: summer jobs for teenagers.
 
This particular economic indicator has been ailing throughout the recession, and it's been reported that 2010 was the worst summer for teen jobs since 1949.
 
But analyzing data from Chicago-based outplacement consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, local reporter Jim Hammerand saw that almost 160,000 teens found summer jobs last month. That's more than twice the number of jobs added in May of last year.

Seven schools in Minnesota were recognized in the U.S. News and World Report's annual Best High School rankings, receiving the magazine's highest rating, a "gold medal."
 
The highest-ranked was Southwest High School in Minneapolis, and others in the top category included Edina High School, St. Louis Park High School, and Minnetonka High School.
 
The state also had 42 schools that received silver medals, and 96 that garnered bronze.
 
In selecting the schools, the magazine looked at teacher-to-student ratios, proficiency in math and reading, and college readiness.

KSTP reports in a recent story that the state’s music scene is “experiencing a groundswell of national attention.”

The hip-hop collective Doomtree, which just got back from a national and European tour, is getting quite a bit of traction, the story states. (See this week's interview with Doomtree member Dessa here.)

Kevin Beacham, who is a marketing specialist at Fifth Element and Rhymesayers Entertainment, states in the story that Doomtree was a favorite at the South By Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas, this time around.

"Last year their presence was strong, but this year they were everywhere. People from all over the world were packing these Doomtree shows to see Doomtree,” he says in the story.

A recent post from the Nieman Journalism Lab, which is a project of the national Nieman Foundation at Harvard, features a new app that Minnpost developed.

The new Bill Explorer tool allows “readers to visualize and dive into the issues that were big at the state capitol,” it states.

It’s a spinoff of other “bill-tracker applications that a number of news organizations, watchdog groups--not to mention state legislatures and Congress--have developed to give people a sense of what their elected officials are up to.”

Director of news technology Kaeti Hinck is quoted, saying that the program needs to show value for both experts and laymen. “Our primary audience is civic-minded people who care about state politics in Minnesota. A majority of our readers come to MinnPost for our politics and policy coverage--it’s our bread and butter," she says in the piece.

Fifteen companies have been named as the Healthiest Employers of the Twin Cities for 2012, according to the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.
 
The results come from extensive surveys about workplace wellness programs, and include factors such as access to fitness facilities, communication about wellness topics, and disease-management programs.
 
Companies that made the list include Target, StoneArch Creative, Syngenta, Minnesota Elevator, Great River Energy, and Accenture. The Business Journal will hold a special recognition event for the companies in mid-June.