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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The Thomson Township Board of Supervisors is once again accepting applications for an open seat on the board. In an effort to self-correct after the Minnesota Department of Administration ruled this month that the board violated open meeting law during its previous appointment process, a special meeting Thursday, Dec. 8 was used to reset the process. At the suggestion of township attorney Dave Pritchett, newly appointed Thomson Township supervisor David Sunnarborg resigned from his seat during...
A city of Cloquet broadband project was among nearly $100 million in internet connectivity grants announced by Gov. Tim Walz last week. Dubbed “the largest single investment in broadband infrastructure in state history” in a city news release Friday, the grants are spread across 61 projects as part of the Border-to-Border Broadband program administered by the state Department of Employment and Economic Development. Walz said the funding and projects would dramatically improve access for thousands of residents, including 33,000 homes and bus...
In addition to closing schools, the blizzard and severe winter weather also caused a delay in the delivery of the Pine Knot News print issue from the printer to the Post Office. It was nobody’s fault, rather an emphasis on keeping our employees safe. We apologize for any inconvenience....
The United States Postal Service appeared to work quickly to address mail delivery issues in Barnum this week after a social media post raised concerns about service in the area. A Facebook post by a Barnum-area letter carrier said the Barnum post office was working with one carrier for all routes, with people out sick and hospitalized. "We are doing the best we can with what we have," the post said. "We have to focus on packages right now because the post office is completely full to the...
The state’s advisory opinion this month that Thomson Township supervisors violated the Open Meeting Law should be a reminder to all elected officials that closing meetings should be done sparingly and always with strict attention to the law. In the case of Thomson Township, supervisors closed a September meeting to discuss candidates for the seat vacated by Jason Paulson in August. In private discussion, they whittled the number of candidates from six to three finalists. Several mistakes were made, including the initial assumption that the b...
Unlike the popular holiday movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” there are few happy endings in the current housing market. The film, most often remembered for a guardian angel, Clarence, was filmed in 1946. It portrays the life of George Bailey (played by Jimmy Stewart), who gives up his dreams in order to run his father’s savings and loan – which helped lower-income citizens of the fictional Bedford Falls buy affordable homes. In the movie, George, unhappily tied down at the “building and loan,” is miserable. In anger, he lashes out at his family...
Sandra Kay Franke, 75, of Cloquet passed away on Sunday, Dec. 11, 2022, at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis. She was born on Oct. 9, 1947, in St. James, Minnesota to Jacob and Mabel Geiger. She grew up on a farm outside of St. James and graduated from St. James High School in 1965. On April 8, 1967, Sandra married Charles August Franke in St. James. Sandra worked at the Fingerhut Co. in Gaylord, Cat N' Fiddle Supper Club and the 3M Co. in New Ulm, and the Kids Corner latchkey program...
This past Sunday, the Moose Lake High School auditorium rang with a stunning mash-up of horns, reeds, drums, guitar and keyboard. Billed as the Andrew Walesch Big Band, it was the third of this year's five Agate Encores Community Concerts. Walesch, who has performed across the region - including at Oldenburg House events in Carlton - acknowledged his professor from St. Olaf College and announced he'd be singing a Frank Sinatra show, at times accompanying himself on the keyboard. It was amazing...
Thirty years ago, when Joanna Wiegert was entering the legal profession, having graduated from Valparaiso University, she found Duluth. An outdoors enthusiast, Wiegert found that Duluth was smaller than her suburban St. Louis upbringing and less urban than the greater Chicago area where she'd gone to law school. "I didn't want to go to a big city. I wanted something different," said Wiegert, 57. "But I wanted to do criminal law, so I had to go to a place that was big enough that they would have...
The Thomson Township board of supervisors violated open meeting law in September when it used closed session to trim candidates for appointment to the board, the state Department of Administration ruled last week. “The board did not identify any other provision within the (open meeting law) or any other statute that would permit it to close a meeting in this situation,” wrote commissioner Alice Roberts-Davis in her advisory opinion. “Therefore, the board did not comply with (open meeting law) when it went into a closed session to review applica...
Editor's note: On Dec. 8, appointee David Sunnarborg resigned his new position so the board could rewind its selection process after the Minnesota Department of Administration ruled that they had violated open meeting law when they illegally closed a meeting to narrow the original list of six applicants to three. Read more about that decision in next week's Pine Knot News or here: https://www.pineknotnews.com/story/2022/12/09/news/thomson-town-board-rewinds-supervisor-selection-process/8447.html. Following months of an empty seat and controvers...
The many huddled paradegoers along Cloquet Avenue last Saturday evening came for the annual Santa’s Home for the Holidays finale of fireworks. But they also collectively told a story about Cloquet. It’s one of a community rich in its expressions of kindness and good cheer. Consider Bob and Julie Noffsinger, who years ago rescued a wooden sleigh from a junkheap, then used it to become fixtures in the parade as Santa and Mrs. Claus. When they couldn’t pull up the tail-end of the parade this year, fellow veteran John Prouty and his wife, LoraLee,...
On Nov. 16, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued a statement claiming “the House Democratic Caucus will continue to explore a path toward welcoming a delegate from the Cherokee Nation into the People’s House,” which could finally address one of many broken promises made to the Cherokee people in the 1835 Treaty of New Echota. This treaty, which led to the horrific events known as the Trail of Tears, was one of hundreds of treaties made between Native American nations and the United States government that remain unfulfilled or broken nearly two c...
Dennis R. Mattinen passed away Nov. 29, 2022. He was born on May 13, 1945, in Cloquet to Carl Hjalmer and Hilma (Esala) Mattinen. Shortly after graduating from high school, Denny enlisted in the U.S. Army. His service took him to Germany, where he spent much of his active duty. He returned to Minnesota and began working as a mechanic, putting his skills learned in the Army to use. He married Judy Hughes on August 16, 1969, in Duluth. The couple made their home in Cloquet, and Denny began a...
Maria Mae Schroeder, 89, of Cloquet and formerly of McGregor, passed away on Friday, Dec. 2, 2022, in Inter-Faith Care Center in Carlton. She was born in Durbin, North Dakota on Jan. 19, 1933, to Elmer and Nellie Gust. She grew up in North Dakota. Maria married James Frank Schroeder on Feb. 19, 1949. They farmed near Evansville, Minnesota until they moved to Esko, where they raised their family. Maria was a representative for the Stanley Home Products Company for 60 years, retiring as a branch...
Shirley Ann Kuberka, 86, of Chisholm died Thursday, Dec. 1, 2022, at Heritage Manor in Chisholm. She was born on Oct. 7, 1936, in Hayward, Wisconsin to Victor and Ruth (Livermore) Olker. She married Stanley J. Kuberka on June 21, 1958, in Hayward. They lived in Wittenberg, Wisconsin, for two years before making their home in Chisholm in 1960. Shirley worked as a registered nurse at St. Mary's Hospital in Duluth before devoting her time to raising her family. She was a member of St. Joseph's and...
Kevin L. Locke, 65, of Duluth died from cancer on Nov. 18, 2022. The son of Fred and Anna Marie (née Lemieux) Locke, Kevin was born Aug. 15, 1957, in Cass Lake. Kevin was preceded in death by his parents and his sister Denise. He graduated from Cloquet High School in 1975 and continued his education in Brainerd, where he earned an associate degree in auto parts and service management. Kevin was a lifelong learner and teacher of Ojibwe history and tradition. He earned degrees in Indigenous...
John Spencer "Tony" Rogentine, 89, passed away Nov. 29, 2022, in Duluth. He was born in Cloquet on Aug. 25, 1933, to John "Toge" and Eula Rogentine. After graduating from high school in 1951, Tony served his country in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. Upon his return, he worked alongside his father at the Cloquet Liquor Store. He eventually became the owner of Curly's Bar in Duluth and then the Ace Bar in Staples, Minnesota. Tony met Elisabeth "Betty" Koch and they were married in 1959....
Mary Helen (Eves) Waller, of Carlton and Cloquet, passed away peacefully on Monday, Nov. 28, 2022, at the age of 89. She was born on Nov. 14, 1933, to Arthur C. and Helen (McKay) Eves and grew up in Superior. Mary is survived by her daughters, Brenda (Biese) Waller and Peggy (Dan, her favorite son-in-law) Tierney; son, Eric Waller; grandchildren Sheila Tierney, Patrick (Alison) Tierney, Linda (Ben) Weiner and Wyatt Waller; four great-grandchildren; sister, Betty Ryan; and devoted friends Vicki...
It was cold, but Cloquet's Santa's Home For the Holidays celebration last week was a warm embrace of the season with a flurry of activity, including the Saturday night parade downtown with Santa and Mrs. Claus in a sleigh, delighting children along the route. Fireworks punctuated the end of the parade, capping off three days of events. As Old Man Winter brings lower temps and longer nights, Santa Claus and his helpers arrived with a special kind of magic during the annual Santa's Home for the...
The Thomson Township Board of Supervisors is once again accepting applications for an open seat on the board. In an effort to self-correct after the Minnesota Department of Administration ruled this month that the board violated open meeting law during its previous appointment process, a special meeting Thursday, Dec. 8 was used to reset the process. At the suggestion of township attorney Dave Pritchett, newly appointed Thomson Township supervisor David Sunnarborg resigned from his seat during a special meeting. The decision allowed the board...
Better walking, biking, trail access is goal of plan The future of the state highway bisecting Cloquet isn't expected to be as vehicle-centric as it is today. A report due this month from Duluth-based Arrowhead Regional Development Commission and the Minnesota Department of Transportation figures to position the four-lane Minnesota Highway 33 as a more pedestrian and bicycle-safe environment, one that also accommodates greater snowmobile and ATV trail frontage alongside the highway. "We're...
Santa's Home for the Holidays festivities have always been something that comes together thanks to the efforts of many, with many organizations each doing their part, and ending with the parade and fireworks Saturday evening. Several downtown business owners instigated the annual event, recalled John Buskala of Buskala Jewelry, downtown's oldest business. The city had reconstructed Cloquet Avenue that year - digging up and replacing the pavement, water and sewer - and businesses were...
Authorities are expected to cite a former renter with a kennel violation following a garage fire in Scanlon responsible for the loss of seven dogs Nov. 18. The former renter at 1208 28th Ave. will face a misdemeanor charge and fine for disobeying Scanlon ordinance requiring a license for private or commercial kennels. The Pine Knot does not generally name a person until they've been charged. "Through her own admission she knows she needed a permit," Cloquet police chief Derek Randall said. "She...
Diane Mary Calhoun, 74, of Barnum died Thursday, Nov. 24, 2022, at Essentia Health in Duluth. She was born in Duluth on Oct. 9, 1948, to Edward and Melba Stevens. Diane grew up in Barnum, graduating from Barnum High School in 1966. She attended St. Cloud Teachers College, earning her teaching degree. Diane worked for the U.S. Sen. Hubert H. Humphrey's office in Washington, D.C., and was very proud to also have worked alongside astronaut Michael Collins during her time at the capitol. She taught...
