🌱 Twin Cities Drop Vaccine Mandates + Kidnapping At Webber Park

Good morning, Minneapolis! Here's a quick guide to the news for Friday.

First, today's weather: Cloudy, a flurry; breezy. High: 38 Low: 4.

Here are the top 5 stories in Minneapolis today:

1. Indoor businesses will no longer require proof of vaccination in Minneapolis and St. Paul, effective immediately. The city lifted the requirement Thursday due to the drop in new COVID-19 cases. Mask mandates will remain. (Patch)

2. Police are investigating a reported kidnapping near Webber Park Thursday. The "domestic kidnapping" occurred in the 4200 block of Webber Parkway around noon. (CBS)

3. Gun violence continues to "overwhelm" North Minneapolis, with two more shootings this week. A sophomore at North Community High School is in critical condition after being shot near the intersection of Penn Avenue North and Golden Valley Road. Less than two hours later and two miles away, a Minneapolis school bus driver was shot in the head. (Patch)

4. Dight Avenue will be renamed in honor of the first Black fire captain in Minneapolis, John Cheatham. A street-naming ceremony will be held in coming weeks after the city council voted to make Cheatham Avenue official. (CBS)

5. A new trail will connect Ole Olson Park and the 26th Avenue North Overlook, the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board announced Thursday. The 1,000-foot trail connection is expected to open in 2023. (Press Release Desk)

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Today in Minneapolis:

• "Disney On Ice" comes to Target Center. (10:30 a.m.)
• Academy Award nominee "The Worst Person in the World" opens at Landmark Lagoon Cinema. (2 p.m.)
• Loring Park hosts movie night. (5 p.m.)
• Play Valentine's Bingo at Mount Olivet Lutheran Church. (7 p.m.)
• The Minnesota Orchestra presents "Firebird." (8 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• Ed Donatell is reportedly in talks to be the next defensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings. (ESPN)
• The University of Minnesota dropped its vaccine requirement for indoor events. (Paid source: Tribune)
• Minneapolis Public Works named Margaret Anderson Kelliher its new director. The Minnesota Department of Transportation commissioner will begin her new role March 2. (KSTP)

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That's it for today. See you all tomorrow for another update!

— Georgi Presecky

About me: Georgi is a Chicago-based newsletter writer and partner content curator. She spent five years on the entertainment beat for FF2 Media covering film festivals across the U.S. Her feature articles have been recognized with awards from the Illinois Women's Press Association and National Federation of Press Women. As editor-in-chief of the Lewis University newspaper, she and her staff earned honors from the Associated Collegiate Press and American Scholastic Press Associations. She began working for Patch in 2019.