The Hmong Cultural Center Museum in St. Paul, one of few public institutions dedicated to displaying Hmong material culture and history, is growing.

The museum, which opened its storefront exhibition space in 2021, has just finished an expansion that increases its footprint by two-thirds, to about 2,000 total square feet.

Visitors can tour the expanded museum for free during an open house, from 3 to 5 p.m. Tuesday. Regular hours are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, with a $7 admission fee per person.

Hmong Cultural Center program director Mark Pfeifer and executive director Txongpao Lee pose for a photo next to a display of story cloths and flower cloths at the museum on University and Western Avenues in St. Paul on Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2021. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

The Hmong Cultural Center, founded in 1992, has been headquartered for the past decade or so in second-floor offices near Western and University avenues. The center provides a variety of support services for the Hmong community as well as research and education programs aimed both at Hmong and non-Hmong people.

Even before the street-level museum opened in 2021, a few rooms in the office space were dedicated cultural exhibits. These were technically open to the public, said Hmong Cultural Center program manager Mark Pfeifer, but people didn’t necessarily realize they could go upstairs.

More exhibition space

The storefront museum has been transformative, he said. It’s open seven days a week and staffed full time for walk-in visitors, and the cultural center has designed 12 different curriculum packets for school field trips. So far in 2024 alone, Pfeifer said, about 1,400 people have come through the space, including over 60 school groups from not just the Metro but greater Minnesota and western Wisconsin, too.

Recently, the center took over another storefront next door to the museum, directly below its offices. The space had previously been storage for May’s Market, a neighboring herb and supplement shop, and adds about 800 additional square feet of exhibition space.

As part of the expansion, the center also installed track lighting throughout both levels to better illuminate displays and educational panels.

The expansion also creates space for the third and final phase of the museum project, which involves connecting the downstairs museum with the upstairs cultural center and library — not currently possible without stepping outside. Integrating the museum with the office-level exhibits upstairs — which still exist — would both grow the center’s capacity for more in-depth rotating exhibits and also allow visitors easier access to the center’s research library, Pfeifer said.

The center is also planning a comprehensive security upgrade to the whole facility.

This third expansion phase is probably the last for the foreseeable future, though, Pfeifer said.

A small admission fee helps cover some operating expenses, but this year’s expansions have really only been possible due to public and private grants, Pfeifer said. Money from the Minnesota Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund, part of the state’s Legacy program, has been particularly influential, as have other gifts from funders like the McKnight Foundation and the Freeman Foundation.

“With the museum, the idea was to take our work to another level and to reach a lot more people, particularly so schools can come in and learn about Hmong culture and history,” Pfeifer said. “This work is not new to the Hmong Cultural Center — we’ve been doing it a long time — but the museum allows us to reach a lot more people.”

Currently on view and coming soon:

The museum’s permanent exhibition includes a variety of paj ntaub, or storytelling tapestries, tools and artifacts brought from Laos by Hmong immigrants fleeing the Vietnam War, and traditional instruments like the qeej.

A new exhibit in the expanded space showcases photographs taken by James E. Williams, who served as a U.S. Agency for International Development financial officer in Laos from 1965 to 1968. The black-and-white photos show celebrations, landscapes and various aspects of everyday life before many Hmong people were forced into exile.

Once the downstairs museum and upstairs cultural center are connected, Pfeifer said, the museum will continue upstairs with a new exhibit on the history of the Hmong Cultural Center itself.

The Hmong Cultural Center Museum is located at 375 W. University Ave.; 651-917-9937, ext. 17; hmongculturalcentermuseum.org

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The St. Croix River in Stillwater crested on Monday, just over moderate flood stage, but river watchers are expecting a long and slow recession of the water.

The river reached 688.09 feet around 10:45 a.m., and stayed at that level most of the day. It was expected to fall to 688 feet – which marks moderate flood stage – around 7 a.m. Tuesday, even with a half-inch of rain in the forecast overnight on Monday, said Tyler Hasenstein, meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

The expected rain coming in Thursday or Friday – more than an inch – “is more concerning,” Hasenstein said. “The river levels could level off, if not rise again at the end of the week. The most likely scenario would be a continued dropdown.”

City crews in Stillwater on Monday began removing jersey barriers and sandbags from the south end of Lowell Park, and “we are working our way north,” said Shawn Sanders, director of public works.

“I’m sure there is some water damage to Lowell Park, but we have to wait until the water recedes,” he said.

Stillwater Mayor Ted Kozlowski said it might take quite a while for the river to recede, especially if the state gets more rain. “It’s staying pretty flat at least for now, but I’m not liking the looks of the forecast for the rest of the week,” he said.

The flood forecast doesn’t take into account future precipitation, he said.

“I’ve lived here my whole life, and I don’t see the river dropping as fast as the forecast is predicting it will,” he said. “That’s just not how the river works. I don’t see the river level changing that much in the next week.”

Stillwater Lift Bridge

The Stillwater Lift Bridge won’t be lowered until after the river reaches 685.2 feet at Stillwater; the river is forecast to reach that level on Saturday afternoon, said Kent Barnard, communications and media coordinator for the Minnesota Department of Transportation.

Plans to remove ballast, restore power and resume operation of the Stillwater Lift Bridge, as well as opening the Loop Trail on the bridge to pedestrian and bicycle traffic will rely on water levels in the St. Croix River.

MnDOT maintenance crews “want to avoid interfering with people/traffic in town for the weekend after the Fourth (of July),” he said. “If the river cooperates, we will probably begin our ballast removal on Monday, July 8.”

While the Federal Emergency Management Agency approved a federal disaster declaration for 22 Minnesota counties impacted by flooding, Washington County was not on the list. Whether the county is included in the future depends on how much damage is revealed once the river recedes, said Doug Berglund, the county’s emergency services manager.

“We don’t know the extent of our damages yet, and we probably won’t know until the river recedes by a couple of feet, and we can see what is left behind,” Berglund said Monday.

The federal threshold that the county must meet is $1.2 million in damage to uninsured public infrastructure, he said.

“An example of that is when the water recedes and Lake St. Croix beach has had riprap damage, and the beach needs to be cleaned up,” he said.

St. Paul

The Mississippi River floods Harriet Island Regional Park in St. Paul on Friday, June 28, 2024. (Devanie Andre / Pioneer Press)

The Mississippi River at St. Paul crested at approximately 5:30 p.m. Saturday at 20.17 feet. As of Monday morning it was at 19.1 feet and is expected to recede under the major food stage — 17 feet — by Wednesday. St. Paul declared a public emergency Wednesday in response to the flooding. Low-lying roads and parks along the river have been closed since the river began to rise. City officials have asked the public to stay away from blocked off areas even with the river level dropping.

The river’s rise was triggered by heavy rains last month that caused flooding across the state. Gov. Tim Walz has sought a presidential disaster declaration after touring flooding in the Mankato region.

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Many new laws went into effect in Minnesota on Monday, the first day of July, including a new fee on retail deliveries that’ll raise more than $60 million a year for roads, a free college tuition program and penalties for using deep fakes to spread election misinformation.

Of all the new laws, the fee on deliveries, which backers say will help pay for road construction and has attracted criticism from retailers and other businesses, likely has the most immediate effect.

As of July 1, Minnesota charges a 50-cent fee on all retail deliveries of $100 or more. The fee applies to sales of goods subject to state sales tax, as well as clothing, though prescription drugs, food, items purchased for resale and baby products will be exempt.

Backers, opponents

Democratic-Farmer-Labor lawmakers who backed the proposal last year said it’ll help raise money for transportation infrastructure, with then-Senate Majority Leader Kari Dziedzic calling the tax a “road maintenance fee.”

Local governments supported it, too, with many counties and cities testifying in favor at hearings ahead of the fee’s final passage as it could help pay for wear and tear on roads.

But business groups and Republican balked at the proposal, with both questioning the need for a tax increase when the state had a nearly $18 billion surplus at the time. In a Monday statement, House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth called the new tax a “junk fee” part of billions in tax increases passed by DFLers last year.

At the time of the fee’s passage, the Minnesota Retailers Association called the bill a “new, complicated taxing system”

Most consumers will see the fee on transactions like Amazon delivery bills, though it also impacts businesses that deliver products to one another.

Billing it properly

On Monday, Daniel Schmidt, vice president at St. Paul-based Great River Office Products, expressed frustration with the new fee, which he says has led to accounting headaches as the software used by the business has trouble sorting through exempt and nonexempt transactions.

“It’s hitting small business in a way that has got to be told to the average consumer,“ he said. “It just makes it a nightmare for our software companies to try to figure out how they are going to put it in and bill it properly.”

Some businesses are exempt from the delivery fee. Any retailer that has less than $1 million in sales won’t have to pay.

Of the more than $60 million the state expects to raise, metropolitan counties will get 36%, small cities will get 27%, 15% will go to “larger cities,” 11% will go to town roads, 10% will go to the state highway fund and 1% will go to food delivery programs like Meals on Wheels, according to House Public Information Services.

Before the new fee passed last year, House DFL lawmakers pitched a 75-cent fee on all deliveries.

But the DFL-controlled Senate and House agreed on the lower fee and the kick-in threshold of $100 in their final version of the transportation bill, which also included a provision tying the state gas tax to inflation in the future.

In addition to the new fee, a few other laws went into effect at the beginning of the month. Among them:

Tuition

Minnesotans coming from families who make up to $80,000 a year can now get free tuition at state colleges and universities under what supporters dubbed the “North Star Promise” program. And a program that helps cover tuition for children who grew up in foster care also got a funding boost.

Deep fakes

There are already penalties for the use of artificial intelligence-generated images and audio known as “deep fakes” to spread election misinformation. But now candidates found guilty of doing so will have to give up office or party nomination.

The time frame for deep fake election manipulation violations also expanded. Now people can be found guilty of a crime for using fake videos, images or audio 90 days before a political party nominating convention, or after the absentee voting period has started before a primary election.

Non-competes

Minnesota banned non-compete agreements in the 2023 legislative session, but DFL lawmakers this year helped expand restrictions on employers interfering with employees seeking different work in the same field.

By banning “shadow non-competes”, companies can’t prevent one of their customers from hiring one of their employees.

Adoption records

Birth records of adopted people are now classified by the state as private rather than confidential, helping adopted people access original birth records.

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Not surprisingly, former champion Tony Finau has already committed to the 3M Open, along with defending champion Lee Hodges.

There have also been commitments from fan favorites like Sam Burns, a member of the Ryder Cup last year, Sahith Theegala, an emerging presence in the sport, and Joel Dahmen, a household name largely because the Netflix series “Full Swing” showcased his big personality on screen.

As excited as tournament director Mike Welch is about the field so far, he’s still hopeful to attract a few more big names to TPC Twin Cities with play set to take place from July 25-28. He mentioned players such as Patrick Cantlay, Will Zalatoris and Adam Scott as possibilities.

“We’ve got a few weeks,” Welch said. “We’re just going to keep on them until they say they’re in.”

No doubt the biggest thing working against the 3M Open at this point is where it falls in the PGA Tour schedule. It’s sandwiched between the Open Championship, which will take place at Royal Troon Golf Club in Scotland, and the Olympics, which will take place at Le Golf National in France. The travel will likely be enough to deter some players.

There’s a chance the 3M Open could attract a number of late additions based how the standings look when play rolls around. On the PGA Tour, the top 70 players in the standings qualify for the FedExCup Playoffs, meaning some players might need extra points to secure their spot.

You never know, maybe somebody like Jordan Spieth will be on edge by then, or maybe somebody like Rickie Fowler could be looking to add to his total.

“There are some interesting names in there,” Welch said. “Our hope is that they give us a look.”

Notably, players have until 4 p.m. on July 19 to commit to the 3M Open, and they can withdraw at any time.

Briefly

There will be a concert on the grounds of TPC Twin Cities on July 27 with country music star Chris Lane performing. The show will start shortly after play wraps up.

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