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
Sorted by date Results 101 - 125 of 293
More people phoned Carlton County to complain about tax increases than attended the Dec. 12 Truth in Taxation hearing. More than 30 people called the county to deliver messages about “unsustainable” increases, or to say, “you’re taxing us out of our home,” said auditor/treasurer Kevin DeVriendt. Only about a half-dozen people spoke briefly during the hearing, and only one rose to the dais to plead his case. “This is the kind of increase that’s not treating our elderly population with respect or dignity,” said Jim Kuklis, who owns Trails Edg...
A new dawn for Carlton and Wrenshall schools appears closer than ever before, after Carlton school board members on Monday talked about moving ahead with consolidation. Carlton board members softened their position on a one-site-only plan Monday, agreeing to start with two facilities — a merged high school at Wrenshall and combined elementary at South Terrace in Carlton. The board left open a vision for construction of a combined one-site school down the line. News of Carlton’s willingness to proceed in earnest with consolidation was met pos...
Remote Carlton County land west of Cloquet will be used to hold wild elk during the establishment of a herd, beginning as soon as 2026, following a vote by the county board Tuesday. “They’re not asking for permission to bring elk here, they’re asking for us to sign a lease on a particular parcel,” commissioner Marv Bodie said, directing the board to stay on task during another meeting that featured a wide-ranging discussion on efforts by the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and Min...
Moose Lake residents will help decide whether to maintain the city’s police force or contract with the Carlton County Sheriff’s Office for the city’s policing needs. The city scheduled a public hearing at 6 p.m. Jan. 24, and will also solicit public opinion by sending out a mailer and polling residents on the topic. The hearing will take place at the city council chambers at 313 Elm Ave. “A city councilor requested a public hearing on the matter to gather community input,” city administrator Ellissa Owens said in a statement. “Consensu...
The Northland lost its most famous fry cook last week, when Marilyn Lundquist died at age 94, having spent two-thirds of those years working the grill at her family's Gordy's Hi-Hat in Cloquet. "She was amazing," said Dan Lundquist, her son. "She was special." Her husband, Gordy Lundquist, passed away at the same age, 94, in July of 2021. When he died, the couple had been married 71 years. And while Gordy was the face of the popular summertime burger destination, it was Marilyn who was its...
Boycott the deer hunt? That was a suggestion from Carlton County commissioner Gary Peterson last week, during a widely attended meeting in Carlton about wolves and their supposed impact on the declining deer population. Peterson was quoted by a Duluth media source as telling the crowd of roughly 300 attendees, "Boycott the deer season," as a way of hitting the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources in its pocketbook. When reached for further comment this week about his suggestion, Peterson...
The city of Moose Lake is weighing a proposal that would eliminate its police department in favor of using the Carlton County Sheriff's Office to conduct the city's policing. The Carlton County proposal would staff the city with four dedicated deputies along with a half-time clerical position at a cost of $574,220. "This is not a decision that the city council takes lightly," city administrator Ellissa Owens said. During a tense Nov. 8 city council meeting, councilors and Owens described being...
When Anthony Uzarowski set out to write a biography about Cloquet native and world-famous actress Jessica Lange, he planned to visit Minnesota, retrace her steps and meet the sources for the book when he could. Instead, the Covid-19 pandemic struck while Uzarowski and his boyfriend were isolated in a tiny village along coastal France. “I ended up doing all of the research from my office,” Uzarowski told the Pine Knot, this time in a Zoom interview last week from Thailand, where he was vac...
Roughly 300 hunters sat rapt Wednesday at Four Seasons Sports Complex in Carlton to hear a new grassroots group's plan to pressure the state to act against federal protection of the gray wolf. The group, Hunters For Hunters, formed earlier this year, in front of the Minnesota firearms deer season, which unfolded with disgruntled hunters throughout northeastern Minnesota complaining about seeing more wolves than deer. "Everybody coming out of the woods [was] going to be mad," said Steve Porter, o...
The Wrenshall school board will vote later this month on another loan to support cash flow during a period of time in the new year when district funds will be at their lowest. Speaking at Tuesday’s work session of the board, superintendent Jeff Pesta compared the $300,000 loan to last year, when the board approved a $500,000 loan. “This is truly our safety net,” Pesta said, later telling the Pine Knot, “in my recommendation to the board, I’m reasoning that the cost of borrowing $300,000 is worth it to eliminate the small risk of coming up...
For the seventh consecutive season, Lakehead Harvest Show is turning its Esko property into a holiday wonderland, with a new burst of lights from a beloved Duluth display. Beginning Friday and for the next three weekends, there will be hayrides, Christmas lights and activities galore at the property located at 70 E. St. Louis River Road, roughly 8 miles northeast of Cloquet. "It's a good way to spend time with family and an easy way to create memories," said Ryan Hansen, president of the club...
The issue of using outside social workers received a second vote in a month at Monday's Carlton County board meeting, where one commissioner continued to vote "no." Commissioner Tom Proulx was the lone dissenting vote in the board's 4-1 approval to use case management services from TLC of Duluth to help address a surge in cases involving people on elderly and disability waivers. Unlike at the meeting Nov. 14, when Proulx conducted an in-depth inquiry of county staff and administration and told...
Thirty-two homesteads in Progress Township are set to receive notice by mail of a pending Carlton County board vote regarding an elk reintroduction pen proposed to be located there. Saying they wanted to collect public input by those most closely affected, county commissioners unanimously tabled a vote Monday that would have addressed the pen. Instead, commissioners agreed to alert residents of the possibility and give them time to appear at the next board meeting, 4 p.m. Dec. 12 at the Carlton County Transportation Building. “I just want the p...
Wolves and winters. Those are the theories being tossed around related to a Minnesota firearms deer season that data show, and most hunters say, lacked the robust deer populations of yesteryear. "I've got more wolves on my cameras than deer," said Trish King, 68, who hunts on 60 acres along Spring Lake Road in Cloquet. "That's a pretty good indication. They've all got collars on, all got tags on. And there's not a darn thing you can do." On Nov. 14, King harvested a 3-point buck - the only deer...
Two Cloquet children were removed from their home Nov. 9 during an investigation into abuse by the mother’s husband. Travis Dean Thrun, 22, is faced with a felony charge related to the suspected abuse of a 2-year-old. A 5-year-old also removed from the home has been listed as a witness in the case. A criminal complaint filed by the Cloquet Police Department alleges Thrun had repeatedly blamed the 5-year-old for injuries inflicted on the younger child. Thrun faces additional misdemeanor and gross misdemeanor charges of domestic assault and c...
When building contractor John Riihiluoma stood in front of a cast of township supervisors and personnel on Tuesday, he turned over the keys to the first town hall in Twin Lakes history. "This is the day we were looking forward to when we started in June," said Riihiluoma, principal partner for Cloquet-based Ray Riihiluoma Inc. construction. The $1.35 million space sits on 30 acres along Douglas Road, a short drive from the new Carlton County courthouse and jail along County Highway 61. The...
Exploration of a merger between Carlton and Wrenshall school districts left the board rooms behind on Monday, as the two school boards convened to tour facilities between the districts. The two groups visited Carlton High School, South Terrace Elementary School, and the three-story K-12 Wrenshall school and its Career and Technical Education building. The tours were limited to 20 minutes each, allowing board members to peek into classrooms, gymnasiums, offices and specialty areas, such as...
A Carlton County board meeting flared hot Tuesday, when commissioner Tom Proulx and county staff squared off over the use of contracted social work. Despite a 4-1 vote affirming the use of contracted social workers to address a surge in disability services and long-term elder care cases, the preceding debate stirred tensions at a time of union contract negotiations. Proulx first squared off with public health and human services director David Lee over the issue. “What would happen if we said no?” asked Proulx. “I would have to come back and a...
Two days after his previously unbeaten football team was eliminated by Annandale, 14-7, at a state quarterfinal game in Brainerd, Esko head coach Scott Arntson remained puzzled. "It just seemed like everything that could go wrong did go wrong in that game," Arntson told the Pine Knot on Monday. He'd watched a tape of the game twice, replaying how the team lost key players to injury, including its star Koi Perich, and let control of the game tilt in a second half that produced no first downs for...
Seven years after it was purchased in 2016, a prominent property in Esko is nearly ready for its big reveal. "We're basically starting over," said Mike Blanchet, who, with his spouse and fellow pastor, Sally Blanchet, will open the doors to Living Word Church later this month. Located at 3 W. Highway 61 across from the post office, the nondenominational church expects to open around Thanksgiving, with 10:30 a.m. Sunday services and additional days of prayer on Wednesday and Saturday nights. The...
From the opening kickoff Saturday, Oct. 28, the Esko football team sought to dominate. Senior Ethan Kilichowski blew up a blocker on Esko's opening kick, then proceeded to make the tackle, triggering an avalanche of physical play that buried Pierz in a 56-8 romp on Esko's turf. The coldest day of the season so far had some watching the game from vehicles along Canosia Road. But many of the Esko players eschewed long sleeves for the Section 7AAA matchup, shrugging off the chill and dispensing...
Marylyn Wefelmeyer was the recipient of a gift certificate to CreativEdge Designs in Carlton this week. Wefelmeyer was spotted traveling with an "I Think Knot" bumper sticker, supporting her favorite news source. "You made my day," she said....
As many of the football teams in the state played section quarterfinal games Tuesday, some members of the Esko football team wore pajama pants to go with their pads as they filed onto their home turf in practice garb. Accompanied by hip-hop tracks piped through the public address system, the team ran through a practice that was vocal and high-tempo, with position groups hustling between drills every seven minutes like clockwork. "That's a big part of our culture," said senior Bryce Hipp, an...
For the first time in 11 years, the Carlton County office responsible for zoning permits, sewer treatment compliance, shoreland alterations, waste and recycling, and well-water analysis has a new face atop its leadership. Chris Berg replaced Heather Cunningham on Monday, when he was introduced as the new zoning and environmental services coordinator at the county board meeting in Carlton. "It's a good, natural progression," Berg said of his ascension into the role. "I'm confident I can do the...
A vacancy on the Carlton school board is one of just two county-based elections on Tuesday, Nov. 7. Last week, the Pine Knot previewed the two-person race for a vacancy in Barnum. The Carlton race is much the same, featuring two people seeking to fill out the remainder of a term vacated by a previously elected official. What follows are the candidates responses to the questions in the Carlton race: Ryan Leonzal Briefly summarize your personal background, qualifications and any prior election...
