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 1 - 25 of 35
Workers from Streeter Masonry replace bricks on the front exterior of the Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Cloquet this week. The work is part of an expected $510,000 in repairs to brickwork in the front and back of the church along with shoring up the roof. The building was completed in 1926 after the Fires of 1918 destroyed the previous building....
Although a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by a former Cloquet police officer against Carlton County Attorney Lauri Ketola and Carlton County earlier this month, the lawsuit is not entirely dead. Claims against Cloquet City Council member Kerry Kolodge, the city of Cloquet, and Ketola in a past role on Cloquet’s Citizen Advisory Board — which works with the police department on hirings, firings and disciplinary matters — are still in play. The civil lawsuit was filed by Scott Holman and...
The minute that former Cloquet police chief Wade Lamirande saw the video of George Floyd dying under the knee of a white police officer in Minneapolis, he knew it would blow up in a big way, with good reason. It was the antithesis of everything they teach in the law enforcement program at Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College, where Lamirande is the program coordinator. He makes that clear in the very first interview with a prospective law enforcement student. "I tell new students coming...
Historic Minnesota events with anniversaries this week. June 26 1959 President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Queen Elizabeth II open the St. Lawrence Seaway in an official ceremony in Montreal. The seaway connects the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean, making Duluth and other lake cities international ports. June 27 1977 Elizabeth Congdon and her nurse are murdered at Glensheen mansion in Duluth. In a sensational trial, Congdon’s son-in-law, Roger Caldwell, is convicted of the murders and sentenced to life but faulty evidence leads to a retrial a...
Wednesday, July 1 Senior Dance at Cloquet VFW 1-4 p.m. Wednesday, July 1 with music by Florian Chmielewski. Potluck, $8 cover. 218-210-7793. Arrowhead Library Bookmobile visits Thursday, July 2: Lake Venoah Boarding & Lodging 10:30-11:30am, Proctor Area Community Ctr 12:15-1:15pm and 2-2:45pm, Solway Town Hall-Munger Shaw Road 3:15-4:15pm, Hermantown Schools Admin Bldg-Ugstad & Arrowhead 5:15-7pm Monday, July 6: Brookston-Pines Board & Lodge 8:45-9:45am, Kettle River-Main Street 1-2:15pm Tuesday, July 7: Cotton-Wilbert Cafe 10am-12pm...
The cost of hiring a consultant to help with ongoing jail issues and future plans was on the minds of Carlton County Board of Commissioners members Monday. The cost of hiring retired Tony Mancuso as a general consultant for maximizing space use in current Carlton County facilities and to assist with hiring a construction manager and architect/engineer for a new jail complex came in at $75 an hour. County coordinator Dennis Genereau thought the hire would be worth the money. “I am pleased that Mancuso — who has helped build or remodel three jail...
Planning for an upgraded 14th Street corridor includes a new roundabout along with a wide multi-use pathway along the east side of the road from Washington Avenue to Cloquet Avenue. About 20 people tuned in to the virtual public input meeting on tablets, computers and phones to learn more about the upgrade last week. The June 17 meeting included a presentation by the engineering firm SEH led by Matt Bolf and Dan Hinzmann. About 30 percent of the work on an engineering plan has been completed,...
State officials told schools last week to prepare for three different scenarios in the fall, but they won't hear which one to implement until late July. And even that scenario could change, depending on local COVID-19 infection rates. The three contingency plans follow: 1. In-person learning for all students with as much space between students as feasible during the day. 2. A hybrid model with stricter social distancing and capacity limits in the building and buses. 3. Distance learning only....
Folks setting off noisy late-night fireworks in the city of Cloquet are likely breaking two laws: Minnesota state statute 624.20 and the city’s noise ordinance. “The short version is anything that gets launched into the air and/or goes ‘boom’ is unlawful,” Cloquet police chief Derek Randall said. The police chief said late-night fireworks have been an issue this year, one he expects to increase as we draw closer to the July Fourth holiday. “We’re probably seeing an increase now just because of people not going in crowds, staying at home doing t...
Minnesota Power was investigating a series of momentary power outages in Cloquet and Duluth this month. On Monday, spokeswoman Kelley Eldien said the power company has received numerous calls about the “momentaries” that last for just seconds but can cause items such as computers to go down. There have been similar calls about outages in the East Hillside neighborhood of Duluth. The cause remained a mystery to crews earlier this week, Eldien said. Power companies across the country have reported more “momentaries” as power grid equipme...
Leaders from Mercy Hospital in Moose Lake and Essentia Health announced that plans for a formal partnership between the two organizations are expected to become effective in early August. As approved by Mercy’s board of directors — which issued a request for proposal last fall after realizing the rural hospital couldn’t go it alone — Essentia will assume operations of a next-to-new facility, as the Moose Lake hospital completed a $38 million expansion and renovation in 2015. Residents will no longer pay $500,000 in property taxes to support...
Peter Cox / MPR News For the first time in months, many Minnesotans in nursing homes and assisted living facilities are being allowed to see visitors face-to-face — at least, with masks on. The Minnesota Department of Health says facilities may now offer outdoor visits and through open windows. Coronavirus infections have led to the deaths of more than 1,000 Minnesotans living closer together in those facilities where many have vulnerable health issues. Staff have also fallen ill amid the C...
Hospitals get back to normal Cloquet’s Community Memorial Hospital is open for all health care needs, hospital officials said in a press release, noting that extensive precautions have been taken to minimize any risk of COVID-19, including screening all individuals coming into the hospital or CMH Raiter Clinic. Other actions helping to raise the level of safety include the wearing of masks by staff and public, staggered appointments for office visits or procedures, seating arrangements in waiting areas to accommodate social distancing, and s...
We love fireworks. They’re loud, illuminatingly spectacular and even inspiring to many, especially on the Fourth of July. Who among us hasn’t gone “ooh” or “aah” over a fireworks display? This time of year brings out a significant number of amateur fireworks enthusiasts shooting off their bottle rockets, firecrackers, sparklers and mortars in the days around the Fourth. Which makes complaints to law enforcement about loud fireworks set off at all hours of the night peak around this time of year. We understand the frustration. Fireworks a...
A few years ago, Cloquet commissioned a police study, which recommended significant changes to the department. A new chief was hired to implement the changes, among other things. Long story short, resistance in the department was so high, the chief ended up resigning. What makes us think we are going to have any real success in reforming police departments around the country, when simple organizational and procedural changes are rejected by the police force? With the recent demands for police...
Hello. I would like to formally introduce myself as the new summer intern at the Pine Knot News. My name is Lexis Gerard, and I am going into my senior year at Cloquet High School. Ever since I was little, I have loved to read and write stories, so I am beyond excited to be working for the Pine Knot this summer. When I am not reading a book near a lake, I keep myself extremely busy. Between school, activities, volunteer work and my job at Epic Nutrition, my schedule is hectic. Last year I was...
Last week, Minnesota legislators ended a nine-day special session with an exchange of offers and pleadings — but no resolutions. No deals were reached on legislation both parties said was necessary, including on reforming police accountability in Minnesota and to help rebuild neighborhoods damaged by arson and looting after the May 25 killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer. For now, it’s unclear when lawmakers will return to St. Paul. What’s also unclear, especially given the partisan differences exposed once again last week, i...
After far too many excursions to local stores where I observe the low level of mask wearing and social distancing, I’m convinced that voluntary measures aren’t working, and that we’ll be facing a significant shutdown of our society and economy well into next year or beyond. This country is already one of the worst globally in regard to increased COVID-19 cases. Therefore, I want to propose that the Cloquet City Council pass a measure to require wearing masks in all indoor public spaces within the city. The science on the effectiveness of mask...
I was appalled to see a regular Pine Knot News columnist write in an article about a tragedy that was done by bad policemen. In my 50 years living here, anytime I called law enforcement, the help was swift and professional. These men and women put their lives at risk every moment they are on duty. Just doing their job protecting us is bad enough, but a backdoor slam against these men and women is beyond me. There was no reason to bring up this terrible event. This columnist should continue to use the column as a free ad for their business and...
Franklin Theodore Chalberg, 82, of Cloquet passed away on June 20, 2020 at Augustana Mercy Care in Moose Lake. He was born to Lawrence and Violet Chalberg on Aug. 18, 1937. Frank graduated from Alborn High School in 1956. He married Carol Lamb on Aug. 19, 1961 in Scanlon. Together, they raised three sons in Culver. Frank worked several jobs before he found the one he loved oh so well. For the next 30 years he drove truck for three generations of the Levine Family, and went the extra mile for all...
Rodger Harmon Olson Sr., 76, passed away June 17, 2020, at home in Menahga, Minnesota. Rodger was born on April 21, 1944, in Scanlon. He is survived by his loving wife of 47 years, Faith (Pajuoja) Olson; his four children, Jes (Patty) Olson, Rodger Olson II, Arlene (Bruce) Breitweser and Rodgena (Chris) St. Germain; his sister, Kathleen Johnson; his brothers Steven (Gail) and Douglas (Ginny); sister-in-law, Sirpa Olson; brothers-in-law, Gary Pajuoja, Jay (Toni) Pajuoja and Cy Voigt; and seven...
Kathleen "Kathy Murray" Owen, 69, of Apple Valley passed away Wednesday, June 10, 2020. She was born in Duluth and raised in Wrenshall. Kathy was a 1974 graduate of St. Scholastica in Duluth and was a U.S. Navy Veteran. She worked several years for the Department of Veterans Affairs in Minneapolis and Memphis, Tennessee, and then worked as a health and dental claims examiner for various Twin Cities area agencies. Kathy was preceded in death by her parents, John and Marie Murray, and her brother...
The Reverend Father Roland Joseph Antus, 85, of Cloquet went to be with our Savior Jesus Christ on June 21, 2020, at Inter-Faith Care Center in Carlton. He was born Dec. 11, 1934, in Cloquet, the seventh child of Stephen and Rosean (Caza) Antus. Fr. Roland graduated from Saint Paul Seminary with a Master of Science in theology. He was ordained in 1962. He served parishes in the Diocese of Duluth including Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Duluth, June 20, 1962-Sept. 8, 1965; Blessed Sacrament...
Walfred “Bud” Esala, 93, and Jennie Esala, 94, of Cloquet passed away April 29, 2019, and October 28, 2019, respectively. A graveside service will be held at 3 p.m. Thursday, July 2 at Maple Grove Cemetery in Cloquet. Military honors will be accorded by the Cloquet Combined Honor Guard. Arrangements entrusted to Atkins Northland Funeral Home, Cloquet. John Keinanen, 71, of Onalaska, Wisconsin, formerly of Cloquet and Esko and a teacher at Wrenshall High School for 34 years, died June 18, 2020, after a monthslong battle with brain cancer. He...
Natalie Swanson shares a recipe from "The New Midwestern Table," a 2013 book of recipes from Amy Thielen. Rhubarb-Lime Icebox Pie Sweet Shortbread Crust Nonstick spray or canola oil 1½ cups finely ground shortbread crumbs (from plain sandies cookies or other shortbread) 5 tablespoons sugar ½ teaspoon ground ginger 3 tablespoons salted butter, melted Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-inch pie plate with nonstick spray (or coat it with a little canola oil). Combine the shortbread...
