Located about a block east of the Marshall Avenue bridge, the 1921 Eastcliff mansion has overlooked the Mississippi River in St. Paul for the past century, having spent most of the past 70 years housing presidents of the University of Minnesota.

Its 20 rooms — including seven bedrooms and seven bathrooms — and Colonial Revival architecture recently hosted the family of Gov. Tim Walz for 19 months while the governor’s Summit Avenue residence was under repair.

University officials say they expect Eastcliff — originally known as the Edward Sr. and Markell Brooks House, and built by lumber magnate Edward Brooks — will continue to house U of M presidents for the foreseeable future, though it won’t necessarily do so under the auspices of the U.

Transfer to foundation

On Thursday, members of the university’s Board of Regents are expected to discuss and potentially greenlight a property sale to transfer ownership of 176 Mississippi River Boulevard N. to the University of Minnesota Foundation, a nonprofit philanthropy overseen by its own board of directors.

While officially independent of the U, the foundation’s primary mission is to support the university by receiving and managing gifts on behalf of the school and individual departments.

The $2.2 million sale would still allow the university to retain ownership of the land that Eastcliff sits on. That land would be leased to the foundation for 40 years, even as the foundation leases the historic mansion back to the school for 40 years rent-free.

In July 2024, the Eastcliff Property Task Force called for placing the mansion in philanthropic hands to remove capital and operating costs from public resources, according to a staff board report. The task force began mulling that possibility or a potential sale in December 2022, after concluding that maintaining the historic mansion at an annual operating cost of $300,000 was not central to the university’s mission.

Retaining Eastcliff as an asset

The U and Regent Board Chair Douglas Huebsch released a joint written statement on Tuesday noting that the decision, which is still pending, could actually strengthen the university’s commitment to retaining Eastcliff as a school asset.

“This transfer deepens the partnership between the University of Minnesota and the University of Minnesota Foundation,” reads the statement. “It allows the University to continue its fiscally responsible stewardship of public dollars while also ensuring that Eastcliff remains an important gathering place for the University community for many years to come.”

Still, the likelihood of a property sale has raised questions with some members of the Board of Regents, including District 4 Regent James Farnsworth, who represents the area. He said the item likely will be removed from the Finance and Operation Committee’s consent agenda, where votes are considered en masse, for individual discussion.

Under the proposed arrangement, the university would still be responsible for Eastcliff’s operations and maintenance expenses, so there would be no cost savings related to day-to-day upkeep.

“It’s a convoluted deal, and I’m not exactly sure why we would do it this way,” said Farnsworth, in a phone interview on Tuesday. “It does not appear to be about financial savings.”

In June, facing what they described at the time as an unprecedented fiscal climate, the Board of Regents agreed to hike tuition by 6.5% while making program cuts across all campuses in an effort to balance a $5.1 billion budget.

Donated to the U in 1958

The Brooks family donated Eastcliff to the university in 1958. Since 1961, the 10,000 square foot mansion has been home to eight university presidents and one governor, and hosted visiting dignitaries for special events, including the Dalai Lama in 2011.

The structure was added to the National Register of Historic Places in June 2000.

The Walz family relocated from Eastcliff in February, once the governor’s mansion was repaired. The property is now being prepared for the arrival of Dr. Rebecca Cunningham, the university’s 18th president, who began her appointment in July 2024.

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By JONATHAN MATTISE

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Democratic and Republican ballots aren’t short on candidates in Tuesday’s Tennessee primary special election to replace a GOP congressman who stepped aside this summer, including one who landed President Donald Trump’s endorsement last week.

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The race to replace former U.S. Rep. Mark Green centers on one of three districts that GOP lawmakers drew as safely red in 2022 by dividing left-leaning Nashville. The Dec. 2 general election could gauge the popularity of Trump’s aggressive second-term agenda, especially with suburban Republican voters.

The 7th Congressional District spans 14 counties, bordering both Kentucky and Alabama. Its voters elected Green by 21 percentage points in 2024 and by nearly 22 points in 2022. Along with parts of Nashville, it includes rural areas, wealthy suburbs and part of the Fort Campbell military installation.

GOP weighs late Trump endorsement

With 11 Republicans on the ballot, Matt Van Epps turned heads when Trump backed him on Friday, the day after in-person early voting had ended. The endorsement prompted another high-profile candidate, state Rep. Lee Reeves, to announce he was suspending his campaign and backing Van Epps, a former general services commissioner in the administration of GOP Gov. Bill Lee. The governor and Green had already endorsed Van Epps. Trump lauded Van Epps for his military service.

It was too late to remove Reeves’ name from the ballot.

The field includes two other Republican state representatives, Gino Bulso and Jody Barrett. Bulso is a Brentwood attorney who has been an outspoken advocate for socially conservative policies, including those that target LGBTQ+ people’s rights. Bulso has poured almost $700,000 of his own wealth into the race.

Outside groups have spent more than $3.1 million, almost all on the GOP side, with upwards of $1.1 million opposing Barrett.

School choice interests who have denounced Barrett’s vote against Gov. Lee’s statewide school voucher expansion are behind many of the attack ads against Barrett. Barrett, an attorney from Dickson, has said he pushed back against the “elites” in his own party and has praised a school choice tax credit initiative touted by Trump. He has the House Freedom Fund’s backing.

Those three have drawn the most attention, but they aren’t the only well-funded GOP candidates. Mason Foley, a health care businessman and former staffer for Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, loaned his campaign $325,000. And Stewart Parks, who was pardoned by Trump after entering the Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, contributed roughly $300,000 to his campaign through contributions and loans.

The state flag of Tennessee stands outside the office of Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District in Washington, Sept. 2, 2025, which has a seat that became vacant following the resignation of Rep. Mark Green, R-Tenn. on July 20. (AP Photo/Robert Yoon)

Also vying for the GOP nomination are Montgomery County Commissioner Jason Knight; Adolph Agbéko Dagan, a Clarksville businessman; former state legislative staffer Tres Wittum; and Joe Leurs, a retired Nashville Police undercover detective. Stuart Cooper, a Franklin businessman, also suspended his campaign and endorsed Van Epps after Trump’s endorsement.

Democrats attack Trump policies

The four Democratic candidates in the race, meanwhile, have attacked the legislation Trump dubbed the “Big, Beautiful Bill,” in addition to his tariffs.

Rep. Aftyn Behn is a social worker and community organizer who has focused on women’s reproductive health rights, including as a plaintiff in a lawsuit against a Tennessee law banning adults from helping minors get an abortion without parental permission. A judge has halted the provision’s enforcement.

Rep. Vincent Dixie, a businessman in the bail bond industry, has touted his record of having served as the first Black leader of a legislative caucus in state history. He said in a campaign video from a garbage truck that “Washington has been piling up garbage for working families.”

Rep. Bo Mitchell, who works in employee benefits, has focused on access to health care and his roots in Dickson County, a rural part of the district.

Darden Copeland founded the public affairs firm named Calvert Street Group and has worked as a consultant on Democratic campaigns. He has seized on being in the private sector amid a field of elected officials.

By BERNARD CONDON

NEW YORK (AP) — Tesla rolled out new, cheaper versions of two of its electric car models on Tuesday in hopes the offerings will help revive flagging sales but investors dumped its stock anyway.

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The new Model Y, costing just under $40,000 with a stripped-down interior, comes in a brutal year for Tesla as it tries to attract more customers despite an aging lineup, stiff competition from foreign EV makers and anti-Elon Musk boycotts targeting the company.

The reaction from the stock market after the news broke suggests the new models are not expected to help much.

“Investors were looking for something truly different, not an iteration of a old product,” said Edmunds analyst Ivan Drury, speaking as Tesla stock dropped sharply in the last minutes of trading. “I can’t imagine this will bring levels back to what they want.”

Tesla also announced a cheaper version of its Model 3 for under $37,000. For New York residents taking advantage of a state rebate, the price was below $35,000.

Tesla has talked about a cheaper car to appeal to more cost-conscious consumers for years, though the two new “standard” models are priced well above the $25,000 price tag promised. They come as customers are widely expected to hold off from purchases over the next several months due to the recent expiration of a $7,500 federal tax credit for electric vehicles.

Tesla stock fell 4.5% to $443.09 on Tuesday after closing the day before up more than 5% on anticipation of the new model announcement.

Compared to previous models, the new Model Y comes with a shorter 321-mile driving range, fewer audio speakers and a fabric interior, not microsuede. The model also lacks a panoramic glass roof and a touchscreen in the second row.

This model faces stiff competition in the $40,000 range for EVs from vehicles including Ford’s Mustang Mach-E, Chevrolet’s Equinox EV and Hyundai’s Ioniq 5.

The new Model 3 has also cut down on the driving range, ambient lighting and other features.

By BRUCE SCHREINER

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky’s attorney general claimed Tuesday that the online gaming platform Roblox has become a “playground for predators” as he announced a lawsuit accusing the company of lax child safety measures.

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The Kentucky suit, filed by his office Monday in a state court, is the latest action alleging that the wildly popular site isn’t doing enough to protect children on its gaming services.

To bolster safeguards for children and teenagers flocking to the site, the company needs to install effective age verifications and content filters, Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman said. Added parental notifications also are needed, he said.

Courtney Norris, a Kentucky mother of three who joined Coleman at a news conference, said she mistakenly viewed Roblox as a safe online gaming choice for her children.

“I came to realize, later than I would like to admit, that it actually is the ‘Wild West’ of the internet, targeted at children,” she said.

The company is facing a growing backlash. The Kentucky suit comes after Louisiana sued the company in August. A suit was filed in Iowa after a 13-year-old girl was allegedly introduced to an adult predator on the platform, then kidnapped and trafficked across multiple states and raped.

Roblox on Tuesday pushed back against the allegations.

“We have rigorous safety measures in place from advanced AI models to an expertly trained team of thousands moderating our platform 24/7 for inappropriate content,” the company said in a statement. “No system is perfect and our work on safety is never done. We are constantly innovating our safety systems, including adding 100 new safeguards, such as facial age estimation, this year alone.”

Roblox says it has 111 million daily active users. The company said in an email Tuesday that it implements strict safety defaults for its youngest users. It said the platform’s users under 13 cannot directly message others on Roblox, outside of games or experiences, and cannot directly message others during games or experiences unless the default setting is changed using parental controls.

The company said it has rigorous text chat filters to block inappropriate words and phrases, attempts to direct under-13 users off the platform and the sharing of personal information such as phone number or address. It does not allow user-to-user image sharing and prohibits sexual conversations, it said.

The Kentucky lawsuit gives a starkly different portrayal of the platform.

Despite assurances its site is safe, the company has failed to install basic safety controls, the suit said. Roblox also fails to inform its users and their parents about “dangers inherent” on the platform, it said.

Coleman, a Republican, said the site’s “cartoonish figures and experiences” appeal to children, but he warned that “underneath this cartoonish, innocent veneer is something sinister. The platform has become a playground for predators who seek to harm our children.”

The Kentucky suit alleges that children are exposed to “violent or sexual situations within the Roblox universe, with parents reporting children contacted by strangers using third-party chat apps that function as if they are part of the game.”

Norris said that like many parents, she considered it a safe choice for her children.

“I described it as a ‘fenced-in backyard’ for kids’ gaming,” she said Tuesday. “And that is the genius and the danger I found of Roblox — the illusion of safety it gives parents like me.”

“The reality is, Roblox makes it nearly impossible to police as a parent,” she added.

The suit claims that Roblox’s lax protections violate Kentucky’s Consumer Protection Act and asks a judge to order the company into compliance. The suit seeks penalties of up to $2,000 for each violation of the consumer protection law.

Coleman said his office is open to negotiating a settlement with Roblox.

“Our goal is not to shut a platform down,” Coleman said. “Our goal is for Roblox to be safe.”

Roblox said it shares the goal of keeping kids safe online, and said it would welcome discussions with Coleman’s office to “ensure they have a clear understanding of all Roblox is doing to keep users safe.”