A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
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Decorated with major state awards and beloved for his leadership both in-house and across the public health sector, Dave Lee conducted his final all-staff meeting on Jan. 9. The roughly 150 employees in Carlton County Public Health and Human Services left him with a standing ovation. The 66-year-old director is retiring at the end of the month after 25 years with the county, with the last 20 in the department's top spot. "I have been director for 20 years," he said. "I feel like I have had my...
A sort of musical chairs has come to the region’s schools this year as several open superintendent positions are scheduled to be filled in the coming days and months. Barnum, Moose Lake and Wrenshall, along with nearby McGregor and Proctor, are all in the market for new leaders atop their district administrations. Wrenshall appears closest to filling its superintendent post, scheduling a round of community-led interviews next week after the school board narrowed its candidate list to two on Monday. “We’re currently out ahead of those other sear...
Now in her second year volunteering for her alma mater Cloquet-Esko-Carlton Nordic ski program, Jazlyn Gunderson reported for practice Jan. 3 to a unique location. Roughly three dozen team members and supporters appeared in frigid temperatures on a 400-yard field at the Cloquet Forestry Center. First-year head coach Phil Rogers had groomed the field and even set a circuitous classic track around the edges, where grassy spots lurked nearby. Nobody can remember the team ever practicing in that... Full story
The Wrenshall school board, half of it newly elected and installed, got straight to work on Monday, setting the table for four superintendent interviews as the district looks to replace outgoing part-time superintendent Jeff Pesta. The board members, including newcomers Jon Beck, Ashley Laveau and Erin Riley, decided unanimously to interview all four candidates who were presented to the board by Pesta, whose last day is June 30. "If we have all four, we get a better idea of where we want to...
A man arrested last fall after the windows of a Cloquet business were smashed now faces more felony charges after a Dec. 30 attack on a corrections officer while in custody at the Carlton County Justice Center. Matthew William Johnson, 27, of Duluth, remains in custody while Carlton County Sixth District Court sorts out his competency to stand trial. According to court records, Johnson was taking part in a remote hearing in a room at the jail and became upset, striking a blow at the hearing equipment and then standing at the door. A...
The Carlton County board met Tuesday for its annual organizational meeting. Sixth District judge Amy Lukasavitz administered the swearing in of newly elected commissioners Sarah Plante Buhs and Dan Reed, along with reelected District 3 commissioner Tom Proulx, representing most of Cloquet. Plante Buhs represents District 1, including large parts of rural Cloquet and Sawyer, while Reed is the District 5 commissioner, representing the western half of Carlton County, including Cromwell, Wright,...
The Carlton County board approved a 2025 budget of $84.9 million on Dec. 23, but not before lengthy discussions on pay increases for the elected county sheriff and attorney. Sheriff Kelly Lake, in her 19th year in elected office, was approved for a nearly $20,000 pay increase, from $142,937 in 2024 to $161,387 in 2025. Twice-elected county attorney Lauri Ketola was increased from $152,734 to $163,800. “I do think it matters that you have people in positions who really care about what they do and commit themselves to doing really good w...
Roughly 40 miles of Carlton County roadway surfaces will receive new pavement in 2025, part of 17 projects costing $12.1 million. “It’s a big year,” said county engineer JinYeene Neumann, who joined assistant county engineer Rick Norrgard near the end of 2024 to discuss the upcoming projects. “Last year was a big dollar amount but a lower number of projects, because of the fact that the projects were more entailed,” Neumann said. “[This] year, we’re doing a large number of projects, but they’re paving projects and not as detailed. We do...
What's it like to be a young farmer in Minnesota? For starters, there's an expanding variety of farms and they're being passed down to young people who supplement their agrarian passions with off-farm jobs. It's a challenge as hard as ever before, but it's not insurmountable. "Many have other jobs, where farming is not their full-time job," said Brainerd-based University of Minnesota extension officer Nathan Hulinsky. "They need help knowing how to borrow money to run their business and how to...
The city of Carlton was expected to adopt a 4.01-percent levy increase following its Truth in Taxation hearing Dec. 4. The taxable levy on the city’s $1.81 million budget for 2025 rose to $516,367, up from $496,457 in 2024, accounting for the 4-percent increase. The city council met Dec. 5 for a special meeting aimed at finalizing the numbers prior to this week’s hearing. “We went through it line by line to see where we can make changes and save money,” mayor Mike Soderstrom said following the Dec. 5 meeting. “People can ask themselve...
Only three members of the public spoke at Wednesday’s Truth in Taxation hearing conducted by the Carlton County board and administration. While small in number, the three speakers seemed to carry the concerns of a broad swath of citizens. Namely, why do taxes keep going up? “If I don’t have enough money, I don’t go to my employer with a levy,” said Cody Gilbert, 43, of Moose Lake, who reported his property taxes have doubled in the seven years since he’s owned his home. Gilbert was comparing how the levy on property owners is used to balance ju...
When the state afforded an additional $10 million to Carlton County in 2023 to help fund the new $75 million Justice Center, the money came with a stipulation. The project would include a justice-involved female program to serve as a demonstration project that might one day be replicated in other parts of the state. More women were being jailed and incarcerated, and lawmakers were sold on the idea of a creative solution to the problem. The 16-bed justice-involved female portion of the jail -...
Every election season, candidates for county office talk about their desire to expand the tax base so that county expenses can be spread across a wider swath of property owners. Growth outpacing expenses would lower individual taxes, which have only risen in recent years. But those are campaign promises. Reality offers a more difficult picture. To learn more about how well Carlton County is positioned for growth, the Pine Knot met this week with one of the primary people responsible for it,...
The local firearm deer season has come and gone with an increased harvest, but a still downbeat mood. Statewide, hunters shot 152,430 deer — up from 126,531 in 2023. In Carlton County, zones 156 and 183 also saw improved numbers. Zone 156 on the western half of the county saw 1,540 deer taken, including 1,292 adult males, or bucks. That was improved from 1,299 overall and 1,066 bucks in 2023. In zone 183, on the eastern side of the county, surrounding Wrenshall, there were 1,264 deer taken, including 1,076 adult males. Comparatively, totals w... Full story
Tom Cawcutt is calling it "the return of a tradition." After a hiatus brought upon by his own health maladies followed by the Covid-19 pandemic, the pianist/vocalist will resume his popular Christmas benefit concert series at 7 p.m. Dec. 13 at Our Saviors Lutheran Church, 612 12th St. in Cloquet. Tickets will be sold at the door - $20 for adults, $15 for students, and under 12 are free. Proceeds go to needy families. It'll be Cawcutt's first solo Christmas concert since 2014. He has been perform...
The region's correctional services for five counties, including Carlton, has found a replacement for its outgoing leadership. The Arrowhead Regional Corrections executive board announced Monday that it had appointed Becky Pogatchnik as executive director. She's replacing Wally Kostich, who is retiring after serving the organization in various capacities for 37 years. In the role, Pogatchnik will lead a staff of more than 250 people, and be responsible for ensuring probation services in Carlton,...
Having completed the best local girls diving season in two decades, Cloquet-Esko-Carlton senior Rilee Durovec will take a breather. But only until her winter diving schedule resumes. Durovec reached the finals and finished eighth in the state Class A swimming and diving meet last weekend at the University of Minnesota. She'd entered the competition striving to reach Saturday's finals for the top 16 divers. She accomplished that and more. "It really means a lot to know I could get there and... Full story
A strong developmental season for the Cloquet-Esko-Carlton girls swimmers and divers came to a conclusion for all but one of the team's participants last weekend. The Section 7A championships in Grand Rapids featured scores of personal bests and many solid performances in race finals. But for Esko senior Rilee Durovec, a history-making season intensified starting Thursday with her participation at the girls state swimming and diving meet at the University of Minnesota. Durovec won the section... Full story
Cloquet police responded to a pair of explosions in October that shook a south Cloquet neighborhood and left one resident to wonder whether he’d been the subject of political violence. “My concern was they didn’t kill somebody,” said John Badger, 55, whose home is located at 1341 Valley View Drive. “It was more powerful than a firework. I had aluminum cans disintegrated into pieces of shrapnel and bottles turned to dust.” Badger sprang from his couch to a “loud bang” sometime after 10 p.m. Oct. 16, he said, and he witnessed a neighbor also come...
Forty percent of the Carlton County board of commissioners turned over on Tuesday, with voters electing two newcomers to go along with the familiar face of an incumbent. "I appreciate the support from the district, it's been great," said 59-year-old Tom Proulx, the District 3 commissioner representing northeast Cloquet, from Scanlon to beyond Sunnyside. Proulx ran unopposed, and earned 97 percent of the general election vote (2,667 votes out of 2,725 cast), winning his seat for a fifth straight...
Whether the Carlton school district consolidates with Barnum or Wrenshall, taxpayers in Carlton face higher taxes, say a pair of financial reports acquired by the newspaper. Last week’s revelation that Carlton and Barnum officials were considering consolidation between school districts included reference to a pair of financial impact reports conducted for Carlton by a Roseville, Minnesota financial advisor of public institutions. The Pine Knot received what were similar 13-page reports generated this year from Ehlers Public Finance Advisors, d...
The thought of objection to a marijuana smoking prohibition in public places evaporated like a puff of smoke at the Carlton County board this week. Unlike when restaurants and businesses went smoke-free in 2007, and bars followed in 2015, there was no great debate or consternation when the topic of public vaping and marijuana smoking cessation surfaced during a public hearing of the county board on Monday. The public hearing to change Carlton County’s smoke-free ordinance to reflect legalized adult marijuana use came and went without public c...
Come the Nov. 5 general election, voters in Wrenshall will be saying hello to three new school board members. Barring a successful write-in campaign, the new faces will be the three candidates on the ballot - Jon Beck, Ashley Laveau and Erin Riley. The trio has gotten to know one another, and agreed to put all of their names onto one campaign sign. "Three open seats for three people," Riley said, "we figured we'd save resources." "We've all kind of talked and feel like we can work well... Full story
This is a story about elections and their consequences. About victims and justice. About hope for a safer, brighter future for the children in our midst. On Aug. 9, this newspaper covered two sentencings in Sixth District Court in Carlton, both criminal sexual conduct cases involving juvenile female victims. The cases were the latest in a series of similar cases being prosecuted locally since Carlton County Attorney Lauri Ketola took elected office in 2019. The emotional afternoon saw the...
A 26-year-old Duluth man was arrested Sunday after a report of someone breaking windows of Burger's Shoes, located at 1609 Carlton Ave., Cloquet. Matthew William Johnson was arrested shortly after the incident was reported at 8:55 p.m. Sunday. Johnson was charged Tuesday with first-degree felony damage to property and remained in Carlton County Jail into the week on $15,000 bail. According to the criminal complaint filed in Sixth District Court in Carlton, a witness called Cloquet police to say...
