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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I’m jazzed about an event coming to a Cloquet church this month. It’s just what we need in these fractured political times. Our Savior’s Lutheran Church will be the venue for a “Respectful Conversation” about this political season, sponsored by the Minnesota Council of Churches, at 6 p.m. on Aug. 28. It’s designed to allow space for people to explore their feelings about candidates and issues minus the “my way or the highway” responses. A church is a good place to hold such a conversation. People tend to drop their defenses, and perhaps most ve...
Anyone interested in running for local school board, township office or most municipal mayor and city council seats has until the end of the day Tuesday, Aug. 13, to file an affidavit of candidacy and pay the minimal filing fee at the respective city, town or school office. Nate Sandman says it’s the best $2 you’ll ever spend. The Cloquet school board chair is wrapping up his eighth year on the board. He doesn’t plan to run again, but said anyone who cares about kids and is passionate about education should consider running. There were zero...
About two weeks ago, I attended the 60-year reunion of the Cloquet High School Class of 1964. If some of you are trying to figure out my age, I am 78 years young. To be honest, I have not attended some of the previous reunions for one reason or another. But I was determined to go to this one. It was held during a bright sunny summer day at the Big Lake Golf Club. No fancy food or program, just a nice get-together. It gave each of us a chance to say hello and talk to classmates we had not seen...
The Cloquet Police Department hosted four training sessions over the past week to help prepare officers and other first responders for active shooter response. The intense, all-day training was hosted by the CPD, and included approximately 120 people from across the area, including Cloquet and Fond du Lac police departments, Carlton County Sheriff’s Office and dispatch, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota State Patrol, Cloquet Area Fire District, and several fire department m...
If all goes as planned, construction on a new dental clinic will start this fall or in the spring in the city’s Business Park, after Cloquet city councilors approved the sale of a 1.3-acre lot just off Highway 33, behind the business park sign. Dentist Wendy Peterson attended Tuesday’s meeting. Peterson plans to build a $2.3 million dental facility called Woods & Water Family Dental with space for up to seven operatories, starting with four. Peterson started her career as a dental hygienist in 2006, then went back to school, graduating fro...
THUMBS UP to Carlton County and the city of Cloquet for staying competitive when it comes to pay for law enforcement officers. Both jurisdictions saw their board and council, respectively, approve pay increases recently aimed at keeping wages comparable to those of surrounding departments and the local labor market. Nobody likes budget increases that stress tax levies. But, the alternatives are stark — losing peace officers to better-paying outfits and leaving our communities vulnerable. “The bigger issue is, if we can’t get qualified law e...
I was pleased to see the council approve the wage adjustment for the police officers and settle their three-year contract. I’m hoping this decision will enhance their morale and job satisfaction. Minnesota is currently grappling with a severe shortage of law enforcement officers. The number of candidates entering the job market is alarmingly low, posing a significant challenge to our law enforcement agencies. For instance, the Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College Peace Officer program, which used to attract nearly 100 students annually, has...
The Cloquet City Council meeting originally scheduled for Tuesday, July 2, is canceled for lack of agenda items. The next regularly scheduled council meeting starts at 6 p.m. Tuesday, July 16 at Cloquet City Hall....
Police are in short supply these days, so Cloquet city councilors voted Tuesday to spend the money to keep its department competitive, approving raises of 6, 5 and 4 percent in 2024, 2025 and 2026. Then they voted again after a closed session to make the pay even more competitive: adding a "market adjustment" to police hourly pay, a move that will likely increase taxes, city officials say. "We value our police department and we want to keep them working in Cloquet," said Ward 4 councilor Kerry...
From discussions about making a pitch for Hockey Day Minnesota, a less complicated, more locally driven idea was born: Hockey Day Cloquet. It's an idea that has legs now that the Cloquet City Council gave the city's blessing to use Veterans Park for the first-time event, set for Jan. 7-17, 2025. Nate Knutsen, who spearheaded fundraising efforts for the high school's new outdoor athletic facilities and the baseball updates at Mettner Field, presented the idea to the council at Tuesday's meeting....
For 36 years, Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College has fulfilled its mission of providing higher education opportunities for its communities in a welcoming, culturally diverse environment. As an institution, we have much to be grateful for. In reflecting on our history, my thoughts go back to what took place behind the scenes in 1987, and years prior, to officially establish our unique institution. We are the only college in the nation that is both a Tribal college and a state community...
The candidate filing period for political races subject to a primary election ended on Tuesday, yielding a ballot with more than a few surprises. In Cloquet, councilors Lara Wilkinson, Iris Keller, Kerry Kolodge and Lyz Jaakola will all run unopposed, barring a write-in campaign mounted against any of them, on the Nov. 5 ballot. In Carlton County, the commissioners’ races are a tale of three different outcomes. To replace outgoing Dick Brenner in District 1, representing west Cloquet, Scanlon and Sawyer, Sarah Plante Buhs and Caleb Dunlap will...
Larson Commons is getting a new lease on life. All the pieces for the renovation of the seven-story senior high-rise building by new owners clicked into place during the Cloquet city council meeting Tuesday. That’s when councilors approved a housing program for Larson Commons along with the eventual issuance of $9.37 million in tax-exempt bonds, which will be used to pay for renovations and programming. The bonds will be paid back by the new owners, Steele Properties, LLC, which has experience across the country with affordable housing d...
The filing period for elected offices closes Tuesday, and there were some notable additions throughout the past week. Sarah Plante Buhs filed to run for Carlton County board, seeking the District 1 post being vacated by Dick Brenner after 32 years in the seat. Buhs is currently a member of the Cloquet school board, and is executive director of the United Way of Carlton County. The District 1 seat represents west Cloquet, Scanlon and Sawyer. For Cloquet City Council, incumbent Lara Wilkinson filed to return in the at-large council seat. The...
The window to run for public office closes at the end of the business day on Tuesday, when the two-week candidate filing season comes to a close. Running for local office is a big decision. A proper campaign to introduce or refamiliarize oneself with voters takes both time and fundraising for things like lawn signs. An election victory means modest or scant compensation in most cases, and comes with loads of responsibility. It requires the office holder to study and be informed on matters, and spend oodles of time in meetings and visiting with...
Four new defensemen have been inked for the Minnesota Wilderness for next season. The Wilderness announced this week that Karson Young of Cloquet, Owen Smith of Maple Grove, Charles Antrilli of Oaklyn, New Jersey, and Talan Del Signore from the Esmark Stars program in Pennsylvania have signed tenders for the 2024-25 season. Both Young and Smith come to the Wilderness after playing last weekend with the club’s 18-and-under team at the Prospects Challenge in Blaine. The team won the championship, finishing unbeaten with a 5-0 record. Both p...
City planner and zoning administrator Al Cottingham received a round of applause during Tuesday's Cloquet City Council meeting - a meeting he hopes will be his last. Cottingham is retiring June 6, after 12 years with the city of Cloquet. "I will very very much miss seeing you here every day and keeping the rest of us on point," said city administrator Tim Peterson. Cottingham said he will miss the people, the job not so much. "It's time to retire and go do some things that I've been putting on...
The filing period for elected offices opened this week, and two Cloquet city councilors are already on the list to run again. Ward 4 councilor Kerry Kolodge and Ward 3 councilor Iris Keller both filed affidavits of candidacy at City Hall on Tuesday. The Ward 3 race is for two years only. Keller was appointed to fill the seat until the next election when former councilor Chris Swanson moved outside of Ward 3; this election will determine who represents Ward 3 for the remainder of that four-year term. Other Cloquet City Council positions up for...
Four Cloquet City Council positions are up for election in November, including Wards 3, 4, 5 and the at-large council seat. Ward 3 would be for a two-year term, the others are four years each. Residents may file affidavits of candidacy May 21 through June 4 at Cloquet City Hall, 101 14th St. in Cloquet. Office hours are 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. The filing period is the same for Carlton Soil and Water Conservation District 1, 4 and 5 supervisors and Carlton County Board of Commissioner seats in Districts 1, 3 and 5....
Fair warning out there, with spring comes a spirit of optimism, and the Pine Knot News is not immune. Thus, we give only positive feedback this week. Enjoy. Thumbs up to news that the legislature adopted compromise language for school district public notices that will keep them in local newspapers and allow only certain school districts — which unexpectedly find themselves without a local newspaper — to publish notices on their own websites until Aug. 1. Like Swift County Monitor-News publisher Reed Anfinson said in last week’s guest editorial:...
The Cloquet City Council chambers were packed with family and friends Tuesday, present to support more than a dozen Cloquet police officers being honored by the city. Cloquet police chief Derek Randall recognized eight officers for meritorious service in response to the deadly Jan. 8 shooting, which left the shooter and two innocent people dead at a hotel in Cloquet. Investigators from the Cloquet Police Department and Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Investigation ultimately determined the shooter...
With a 1-0 overtime win April 5 in the finale of a two-game set with Springfield, the Minnesota Wilderness surged into a prospective playoff spot with two regular-season games to go. The Wilderness got a goal from Nate Murray two minutes into overtime to secure the win at Northwoods Credit Union Arena in Cloquet. Goalie Adam Prokop, of Wausau, Wisconsin has been carrying the team of late, and completed his fourth shutout of the season. The Wilderness (29-24-5) face the Springfield Jr. Blues...
Pine Valley Recreation Area received an unexpected boost this week - and it wasn't from the late-season snowstorm. During the Cloquet city council meeting Tuesday, longtime city parks commissioner Tom Urbanski shared news of a $1 million commitment for construction of a new multipurpose chalet at the popular Cloquet park. The donation comes from a family with deep ties to Cloquet and neighboring communities. "I am happy to inform you of my intent to donate funds for the planning and...
The new owners of the Hotel Solem building in downtown Cloquet can begin pulling building permits now, after the Cloquet City Council unanimously passed a slew of resolutions that will help fund its transformation into modern apartments. They also got a blessing from David Guckenberg, the grandson of Hans and Lucy Solem, who built the new hotel at 915 Cloquet Ave. more than 100 years ago. "A lot of memories in that hotel," said Guckenberg, briefly addressing the council at the start of the...
The woodpiles weren't a problem until they moved behind her house last fall, said Deb Kamunen. The Cloquet resident has lived next to the former Diamond match mill for 37 years. When the mill was still operating at 1800 Cloquet Avenue - under various owners - the lot behind her home was used for parking. Now it's a woodyard, piled high with logs stored there for the Potlatch mill in Brainerd. That is an allowed use, according to Cloquet city code. Woodyard manager Jesse Fitzsimmons leases...
