Noting that the sale of young girls for sex often begins with online ads and ends in suburban hotels, a coalition of officials from law enforcement and the hospitality industry launched an initiative to put hotel and motel workers on the front lines of the fight against prostitution.

A fire broke out early Sunday morning at the Buck Hill ski and snowboard area in Burnsville. KARE 11 reports flames were shooting through a temporary tent structure when firefighters arrived. The haunted house was under construction and scheduled to open early next month. No injuries were reported and the cause of the blaze is still under investigation.

The 49-year-old Millennium Hotel in downtown Minneapolis will close in mid-December and reopen in April. Once the renovation work is officially complete in mid-June, Twin Cities Business writes each guest room will feature a plasma television, high-speed Internet and a mini refrigerator. Millennium's current restaurant and bar will also be replaced.

Fire destroyed Zup's grocery store in Babbitt and an adjoining drug store. The Duluth News Tribune reports three other businesses suffered water damage. The total damage is estimated at $1 million.

The Metropolitan Airports Commission issued a query in June to any developers who might be interested in constructing a small hotel – perhaps 70 or 80 rooms – in an existing parking lot across from the entry to the airport’s main Lindbergh Terminal, Finance and Commerce reports. Three responded, although the small size and sound-proofing issues would make the project difficult, developers say.

Six-year-old Paige Nason woke up in the night to find her pillow smoldering. She get her mother and siblings up and the family escaped the fire that destroyed their home near Deer River, although mom was injured when she went back inside to retrieve the family pets.