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City Cast Twin Cities

City Cast Twin Cities

🎄 Last-minute local gifts

December 23, 2025

Good Morning, Twin Cities! It’s Adam today. Do you ever wonder what it's like to be Santa Claus? We get a little bit of extra insight into that here on the City Cast Twin Cities team, as our executive producer Anna Weggel is married to a Mall of America Santa! The Star Tribune just posted a profile on him, and it's really cool to see all that goes into embodying the Big Kringle.

Today’s Must-Know

A parking lot with cars in it. The ground is covered by snow and the sky is a hazy white
Surdyk's carries a limited-run, dark red Christmas Gin that's sure to bring some holiday cheer. (Adam Sage / City Cast Twin Cities)

Last-Minute Local Gifts for Foodies

What do you get for the person who has everything? Something they can eat! Local food writer James Norton put out an excellent gift guide for foodies on The Heavy Table, and he came on today's episode of City Cast Twin Cities to shout out some great options you can still get your hands on before Christmas. [🎧 City Cast Twin Cities]

  • Tasty Treats: Head over to Golden Fig Fine Foods in St. Paul for quality meats, cheeses, crackers, and sweets from upper midwest makers. Special shoutout to the Sted chocolate bars you can find there – these fancy candies make great stocking stuffers and come in holiday flavors like eggnog, lingonberry, and salty licorice.
  • Ifs, Ands, or Bundts: For the baker in your life, go to Nordic Ware Factory Store in St. Louis Park to pick out some excellent Scandinavian cookware. These are the people who invented the bundt pan, so they know what they're doing.
  • Booze is always festive, but the limited-run bottles of Christmas Gin at Surdyk's in Minneapolis are a perfect offering for a holiday party. I actually grabbed a bottle for a party last year, and it was a hit! Surdyk's is also a great place to find fancy meats, cheeses, and oils on the deli side of the store.

What the Cities Are Talking About

Bargaining hits a breaking point: Educators in the Anoka-Hennepin school district, the largest district in Minnesota, voted overwhelmingly to authorize the use of a strike in their current contract negotiations. Members of the union say they are being presented with a "false choice" of having to choose between wage increases or healthcare cost mitigations. If a deal is not reached, the educators could strike as soon as early January. [Bring Me The News]

"Sensationalized": After Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Thompson alleged that MN Medicaid programs were fraudulently billed for $9 billion, Gov. Tim Walz hit back, saying that the federal government is coming up with these numbers with the goal of eliminating the social safety net for those who need it. MN's State Medicaid director said that evidence substantiates fraud in the tens of millions of dollars, far less than $9 billion. [Minnesota Reformer]

St. Paul de-ICEs parking lots: St. Paul sent a cease-and-desist letter to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to prevent the use of city-owned parking lots for federal immigration enforcement. The city of Minneapolis has also taken steps to prevent ICE from using city-owned parking lots. [City of St. Paul]

A crossword puzzle. 5 across and 3 down
How deep is your Christmas knowledge? (Sean McPherson / Crossword Labs)

You think you know Christmas? The answers to this week's crossword are all Christmas words! Can you finish it without looking anything up? 👀 [Crossword Labs]

Honoring a legend: A statue will be built in Landmark Plaza in downtown St. Paul to honor photographer, filmmaker, author, and activist Gordon Parks. Parks started his career as a photographer at the St. Paul Spokesman and the Minneapolis Recorder (now the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, the oldest Black newspaper in the state), and he was the first Black director of a major Hollywood motion picture with the release of Shaft in 1971. [Insight News]

Shots fired: A federal immigration officer "defensively fired" his weapon twice after being struck by a vehicle as a suspect was fleeing officers. No one was hit by the bullets. According to a statement from a DHS assistant secretary, a chase ensued after ICE agents attempted a "lawful vehicle stop," and the suspect hit two officers and rammed an ICE vehicle while trying to escape. [Star Tribune]

Sponsored Content

World Junior Hockey Championship returns to Minnesota

World Junior Hockey Championship returns to Minnesota

The World Junior Hockey Championship, one of hockey's most prestigious events showcasing the best under-20 players from around the world, is coming back to Minnesota for the first time since 1982. Check out the tournament website for details and tickets, and visit the Bold North Breakaway fan fest at St. Paul’s Rice Park from Dec. 26-Jan. 5.

What to Do

Tuesday, December 23

Wednesday, December 24

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Before I go, I want to shout out our newest Neighbor, Amy W.! Thank you so much for supporting the work we do here.

If you'd like to become a Neighbor by joining our membership program, you can find more info here. We're going to start throwing some awesome exclusive events for our Neighbors in the new year, so don't miss out!

— Adam Sage

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