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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Current at-large city councilor Lara Wilkinson announced her intention today to run for re-election for the Cloquet city council. "I'm proud of the work the council has done since January of 2019," said Wilkinson. "We have transformed the leadership of Cloquet, made difficult decisions, and are moving the community toward the kind of strength and stability that has been much needed." Wilkinson said she will focus on building city leadership, street improvements, economic development and tax cont...
While many small and large businesses have tapped into government grant and loan programs offered in response to the shutdowns and economic downturns wrought by the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many businesses are still hurting. The Cloquet Economic Development Authority wants to help. The Cloquet EDA unveiled a small business assistance program to provide small businesses within Cloquet city limits with COVID-19 relief in the form of low-interest loans. They're targeting local businesses... Full story
Every crisis results in changes. Floods alter the flow of rivers. Volcanoes can move mountains. After 9/11, the invasive screening process at airports we accept as “normal” were implemented here. And while it’s still too early to tell how life will look post-COVID-19, we are pleased to see government is taking its open meeting requirements so seriously during this pandemic. Open meetings are essential to good government. Enough happens behind the scenes as it is, and with news outlets such as newspapers becoming scarcer, the public has less...
The COVID-19 pandemic has been wreaking havoc on sports across the country and this area is no exception, with youth baseball and softball in a holding pattern. Cloquet Area Youth Baseball/Softball Association president Jason Eckenberg sent a letter to parents of players in the CYBSA, explaining how the organization is managing the current situation. It's complicated, because the volunteer board has to deal with two leagues. "The Quad City League, which is the league that Cloquet Youth Baseball... Full story
The City of Cloquet announced public access changes to city buildings and parks in response to the lifting of the governor's stay-at-home order. Here are the basics of those changes as outlined by the city: Public Meeting Updates City Council meetings will continue to be conducted virtually allowing for the public to view and participate live. The meeting will also be streamed live on the City's website and available after the meeting to view at your convenience. This will continue to be reviewe... Full story
The filing period opens Tuesday, May 19 for three Cloquet city council positions: Ward 4, Ward 5 and At-Large. Because Cloquet City Hall is currently closed to the public, affidavits of candidacy will be accepted by appointment and curbside, Monday through Friday between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. Make an appointment by either calling 218-655-1501 or emailing [email protected] or [email protected]. The filing period ends at 5 p.m. June 2. The filing period for county and state offices also runs May 19-June 2. Candidates for D... Full story
The nets were up at the Pinehurst Park basketball court by 9 a.m. Wednesday morning, following the decision at Tuesday's Cloquet city council meeting to fully reopen the parks. The skatepark is also open now. The city is asking residents to maintain social distancing at the parks, and to be aware that jungle gyms are not being sanitized. Parks workers are posting signs with cautions and suggested guidelines.... Full story
Cloquet city councilors tried to find a balance between keeping people safe on the one hand, and allowing them to have fun outside at city parks on the other during Tuesday’s online council meeting. In the end, they chose safety in a time of pandemic, acknowledging that it is almost impossible to actually police the parks and ticket people who aren’t complying with orders to remain socially distanced while exercising outdoors. Councilors voted 4-3 to close the Pinehurst Park basketball cou... Full story
Northwoods Credit Union's board of directors recently appointed Jeff Kletscher as its new board chairperson. Kletscher has served on the Northwoods Credit Union board since the 2018 merger with Floodwood Area Credit Union. Prior to that, he served on the Floodwood Area Credit Union supervisory committee for many years. Kletscher is a licensed real estate broker and owner of Northland Woods-n-Water Realty in Floodwood. He also works for Hope Lutheran Church as the church administrator. In the...
Neighbors’ voices beat out public safety officials and educators in the debate on whether or not to include a sidewalk in the upcoming Prospect Avenue street reconstruction project, as Cloquet city councilors voted 5-2 Tuesday to reject the sidewalk bid. Councilors Bun Carlson, Sheila Lamb, Kerry Kolodge, Steve Langley and Mayor Roger Maki voted against the sidewalk while councilors Chris Swanson and Lara Wilkinson were the two “nay” votes. The vote in favor of the street project itself was u...
At the direction of Gov. Tim Walz, the city of Cloquet has opened a limited number of park facilities to allow for safe outdoor recreation — provided people follow safe social distancing practices. Tennis courts are already open to the public. Facilities will be open for small groups and recreational use only. Organized events and league play continue to be prohibited by the State of Minnesota. Playgrounds will not reopen for now, because it’s impossible to keep them disinfected. Additionally, the skatepark at Athletic Park on the corner of... Full story
The Cloquet City Council will again be holding its city council meeting by teleconference, in response to the COVID-19 emergency. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. April 21. Residents who would like to submit comments or questions for the Public Comments portion of the meeting are asked to email [email protected] prior to the meeting and include “Council Agenda” in the subject line along with your name and address and any agenda item you are referring to. All public comments are considered public data. Residents can listen to the meeting by... Full story
CAT7 TV is back. The community access channel serving Cloquet, Carlton, Scanlon and Esko residents had not been operating since March 5, when the Cloquet City Council voted unanimously to terminate the station's only remaining employee, coordinator Eric Lipponen. After meeting with members of the Cable Commission, the city hired contractor Martin Dean to get the station up and running again, which took only a couple hours, according to city administrator Tim Peterson. CAT7 is Cloquet's only loca...
Our town, your town, my town. There are many small communities with a history which are questioning the future. Public television in Duluth recently aired the documentary “This Town,” which highlighted regional towns that have had economies falter, populations decline as a result, and are now shadows of the cornerstones of rural America. It is a story that has been repeated too many times across the country as family farms falter, young adults seek better pay in larger cities, and the ent...
CAT7 TV must have at least seven lives. Following a year (2019) when the community access television channel was black almost as much as it was broadcasting, the station is black again following the dismissal of its only remaining employee on March 5. Cable coordinator Eric Lipponen was present and the subject of a closed meeting with the Cloquet city council that night. Immediately after the meeting was reopened, councilors voted unanimously to terminate Lipponen's employment with the city, on...
This week's Cloquet city council meeting laid out a new world order, before even a word was said. Councilors sat one or two chairs apart, with two attending via conference call to make space for social distancing (the recommended 6 feet between individuals). More than half the chairs for audience members had been removed, to make sure no one sat too close to one another. By the end of the meeting, the council implemented even more changes to minimize the spread of COVID-19, the disease caused... Full story
Councilors nearly tabled a project that would repair some of the city's worst streets after a public hearing Thursday, March 5 revealed the biggest pothole in the project: attitudes about the planned addition of a sidewalk to Prospect Avenue between 14th and 22nd streets. On one side were numerous residents, many who live in homes that came with small front yards that would likely get smaller. On the other side were people advocating for pedestrian safety: representatives from the Cloquet Area F...
After the Cloquet City Council fired Eric Lipponen, the CAT-7 cable TV coordinator, I have been asked repeatedly: Is CAT-7 dead? Will "Harry's Gang" ever come back? I am encouraged by the comments, actually. I have produced exactly four "Harry's Gang" shows in the past year, not counting some candidate interviews. (In case you didn't realize my point, there are 52 weeks in a year. Having taped 4 weeks out of 52 is a sign that maybe, just maybe, something is wrong at CAT-7. So, to have so much in...
Carlton County Soil and Water Conservation District Barb Dahl - District 1 [email protected] Russ Kurhajetz, District 2 [email protected] Bob Fox, District 3 [email protected] Kim Samuelson, District 4 [email protected] Rick Dalen, District 5 [email protected] Carlton SWCD offices are located at 808 3rd Street in Carlton. Call the office at 218-384-3891. Carlton County Board of Commissioners Dick Brenner, District 1 218-879-5572, [email protected] Marv Bodie, District 2 218-879-2085,...
Ward 3 Cloquet city councilor Chris Swanson took the oath of office for the second time in seven months Tuesday, this time as a duly elected representative following his appointment in July. The council meeting Tuesday was a quick one, with no public hearings, no presentations and no comments from the public. Changes at the Cloquet police department dominated much of the short meeting, as acting police chief Derek Randall recommended the council approve the appointment of Eric Baker to the position of detective, effective that same day. The...
The Carlton Soil and Water Conservation District returns to the Cloquet library with a fun activity for kids Monday, along with a program for families and adults at City Hall, all centered on the topic of recycling, repurposing and better waste management habits at home. From 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, Feb. 24, kids can enjoy a hands-on activity repurposing and being creative with “waste” materials in building rubber band cars from recycled goods during the library’s Tinker Club program. On the adult-oriented front, county resource and recyc...
The only thing Chris Swanson lost in Tuesday's special election was the "interim" title for the Ward 3 Cloquet City Council seat. Swanson garnered 84 votes to 14 for Uriah Wilkinson on Tuesday, out of a possible 1,299 registered voters in Cloquet's Ward 3. Swanson was pleased to win, but also praised Wilkinson, father of five and a Realtor in the area for the last 15 years. "I have Uriah's sons in class right now. They are wonderful and lovely human beings," said Swanson, a history and...
Cloquet citizen Tim Krohn was on hand again Tuesday to accept another donation for the extension of the Pine Valley mountain bike trail. The donor this time was Minnesota Power. Chris Rousseau, Carlton grad and Minnesota Power manager of renewable operations, was there with a giant check for $2,500 for the trail. Cloquet Public Works director Caleb Peterson explained to the council that the original budget for the trail extension was $125,000. Krohn and other Pine Valley volunteers first...
Scott Holman, the former Cloquet police officer who is now suing the City of Cloquet, didn’t run for mayor as I stated here a few weeks ago; he ran for city council against Kelly Riihiluoma but lost 44 percent to 55 percent. That was in 2002, and Holman reminded me about his comment on “Harry’s Gang” during the campaign that the old water tower should be torn down and sold for scrap. (I was hoping at least one candidate for any city office would want to preserve the old water tower, as we just b...
The 2020 voting season starts Tuesday in Cloquet with a special election for the Ward 3 City Council seat vacated by Dakota Koski in July. Candidates Uriah Wilkinson and Chris Swanson are asking voters to elect them for a term effective through Dec. 31, 2022. Find out more about each candidate in the Q&A section below. The election is for residents of Ward 3 only, which lies between Highway 33 and 14th Street, and Doddridge Avenue and the St. Louis River in Cloquet. Polls will be open from 7... Full story
