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 1035 - 1059 of 3953
The Cloquet Housing & Redevelopment Authority has received designation as a “High Performer” by the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development under the Public Housing Assessment System Measurement of four key indicators: Physical, financial, management, and capital fund administration. Executive director Debra Shaff attributes achieving HUD’s highest ranking to the HRA’s staff and commissioners. “Big things are possible as a result of our commissioners and staff’s continued commitment, enthusiasm, perseverance and leadership,...
Esko parents are continuing to show up and show their support for changing the school district’s Eskomos nickname. At the Esko school board’s meeting Monday, two parents and a representative from the National Coalition Against Racism in Sports spoke in support of changing the mascot during the open forum portion of the meeting. Two letters of support were sent to the board as well. Parent Rachel Gilbertson said many more support the cause. “Within the last two months, I’ve received an outpouring of support from people throughout this communi...
Carlton and Wrenshall have completed the plan to combine all competitive activities with the merger of robotics and speech for next year, Carlton superintendent John Engstrom announced Monday, following the debut of combined spring sports this year. Activities such as theater and prom will have a different approach, he said. Engstrom explained that each school puts on one or more plays and that they should be kept in place, “but also open them up to the student body of each.” The decision whether to combine prom and dances went to the stu...
The Minnesota Court of Appeals has rejected challenges from Dennis Michael St. John Jr., who was found guilty by a Carlton County jury in January 2022 of three counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, along with kidnapping and domestic assault of a woman. St. John’s attorney, Kevin Gregorius of Meshbesher and Associates in Minneapolis, asserted that the Carlton County Sixth District Court erred in seven instances regarding procedures, evidence and testimony during his trial. All were rejected by the appellate court led by Judge Tracy S...
The conflict between an outspoken business owner and the Wrenshall city council spiked again last week, when the council voted to send a letter informing Jeff Bloom he was out of compliance with city ordinance. Bloom is the owner of the Wrenshall General Store and RV park, and was in attendance at the May 3 city council meeting. Bloom told the board he would not seek to renew an interim use permit for his Ponderosa Sales, an auction business located on the same property as Bloom's other...
Daniel Wilson, a committed client at the Minnesota Sex Offender Program facility in Moose Lake, said Wednesday that a "vast majority of clients are horrified" by the two assaults that took place there recently. He said that despite the past records of the people who live at the facility, most are "nonviolent." But he also said "we all sort of expected it" when it came to the attacks. On May 1, according to a complaint filed in Carlton County District Court May 3, client Nicolas Ladell Aron-Jones...
The Cloquet Middle School gymnasium was transformed into a powwow grounds Saturday for the seventh annual Ziigwan (Spring) Powwow. "It's a way we can honor our students, our program and our school," said Cloquet American Indian Education program director Teresa Angell. "And we invite the whole community." Angell counted 300 people at the feast, plus others who came and went during the daylong event. It was a happy occasion, the first school powwow after a three-year hiatus because of Covid-19....
The snow may have finally melted, exposing the effects of December’s devastating storms. The heavy snow left some young trees bowing like monks while older trees fell or dropped limbs that were overwhelmed by the weight of the wet snow. The freeze that followed froze many in the same position much of the winter. Strong winds this spring are finishing the damage in some cases; people armed with saws and clippers are doing the rest. In an effort to help citizens who are now cleaning up the m...
A 29-year-old man committed to the Minnesota Sex Offender Program in Moose Lake was arrested on assault charges Monday after causing a 53-year-old staff member to be airlifted from the facility. The condition of the victim was not known late Monday, said a Carlton County Sheriff’s Office news release. Carlton County 911 dispatch received a call from the Minnesota Sex Offender Program at Moose Lake at 1:23 p.m. Monday, reporting a client assault on a staff member. Sheriff’s Office deputies and Essentia Health ambulance services responded, alo...
The Cloquet Fourth of July committee is looking for community-minded volunteers to help organize and/or work the community’s largest annual event. Many hands make light work, and this event could certainly use a few more hands, whether it's stuffing envelopes or making calls for donations, helping with setup on July 3, or with events on the Fourth from wiffleball to face painting to the parade. Call or text 218-213-1231 or email [email protected]....
The Cloquet Area Chamber of Commerce honored two of its members as businesses of the year at its 70th annual meeting and banquet last week, and paid special attention to two local industries that are reaching major milestones this year. The Cloquet Sappi mill is celebrating 125 years of manufacturing at its site along the St. Louis River in Cloquet, while USG Interiors will mark 100 years of manufacturing in the historic West End of Cloquet. While both businesses have changed owners and...
The Thomson Township board of supervisors is moving forward with the East Riverside Road paving project that residents have been pushing for since 2019. The board approved a bid for the paving project at their meeting on April 27, 2023, for $403,864. The township received five bids and ultimately selected the lowest bidder to complete the project. This comes after 27 township residents signed a petition urging the board to repave East Riverside Road in March 2021. Due to new building construction on the road, the board approved the request for...
A 31-year-old Grand Rapids, Minnesota man was killed Saturday, April 29, when his tractor-trailer overturned, catching fire and causing an explosion north of Cloquet, at the convergence of northbound Minnesota Highway 33 and U.S. Highway 53. Xavier Ryan Henson was hauling a tanker northbound on Highway 33 and was unable to negotiate the curve at the junction with Highway 53, a Minnesota State Patrol news release said. The semi left the roadway, overturning and catching fire. Smoke in the aftermath of the explosion and subsequent fire could be s...
Carlton County has been awarded federal funds made available through the Department of Homeland Security under the Emergency Food and Shelter Board Program. Carlton County has been chosen to receive $5,987 from the State Set-Aside and $6,441.00 State Set-Aside Reallocation to supplement emergency food and shelter programs in the county. Carlton County has distributed Emergency Food and Shelter funds previously to the Salvation Army, Moose Lake Food Shelf, and the Tri-Community Food Shelf. Public or private volunteer agencies interested in...
'God always takes the good ones first' Hundreds of people packed the National Guard Armory in Cloquet Tuesday morning to pay their respects to a Cloquet dad, husband, father and coach who died earlier this month. Master Sgt. Noah Feehan, 39, died of glioblastoma, a brain cancer likely caused by exposure to toxins emitted by burn pits and jet fuel while serving in the Air National Guard as an avionics technician for 18 years. Before the service started, the line of folks waiting to get in snaked...
Presented with a plan to cut a program that's been serving kindergarten-age children locally for decades, the Cloquet school board balked Monday. The board denied a recommendation to close the Early 5's wrap-around care program, but not before hearing from a host of mothers and past users of the program. "It's frustrating and upsetting to worry about other kids falling through the cracks," said Emily Dunaisky, whose son was in Early 5's. Carly Baker said her husband is 37 years old and "he did...
The city of Carlton may have hit a speed bump last week on its way to adding two full-timers to its ambulance service. A skeptical Wrenshall city council heard Carlton’s proposal during a special meeting April 19, and Wrenshall’s five-member board remained noncommittal, telling Carlton it would have an answer following its May 3 council meeting. “Why does Carlton have to be in the ambulance business?” asked Wrenshall councilor Melvin Martindale. “You’re 1,100 people strong and you’re just not big enough to support (it) and you’re raisin...
Carlton County's Dotseth supports secession study The seriousness of a Republican bill introduced last week can likely be summed up in its author's preferred name for it, the "Rocks and Cows Act." The bill would produce a study by an appointed commission on finding a pathway for Minnesota counties bordering North Dakota and South Dakota to be annexed into those states. The bill was introduced by Rep. Matt Grossell, with 19 other Republicans signing on, including Carlton County's Rep. Jeff Dotseth, who supports a study on why neighboring states...
Eight years have passed since the Carlton County Board of Commissioners approved the half-cent sales tax and the yearly $20 fee per vehicle licensed in Carlton County. In 2022 the net receipts of this funding mechanism has risen to more than $2.55 million, much higher than first anticipated. Originally, the funding was promoted as a way to rehabilitate and repair county roads numbered above 100, whether they were tarred roads or would remain gravel thoroughfares. State aid, coupled with federal...
Carlton County township officers had their spring meeting on Tuesday, April 25. Carlton County emergency management director Marlyn Halverson asked for townships to report on their increased costs suffered during the spring flooding this last two weeks. State funding is probably available, he said, asking township authorities to send photos, costs and other information to [email protected]. The township group approved a resolution to the county board to increase funding for the Transportation Department this next year by 6...
Newly released 2022 data from the Minnesota Department of Health show rising levels of syphilis in Minnesota. Chlamydia, gonorrhea and HIV/AIDS numbers show a slight decline during 2022 compared to the previous year but continue to impact thousands of Minnesotans. Syphilis cases rose to 1,832 during 2022, a 25-percent increase from 1,457 cases in 2021 and hitting the highest level in recent years. New infections continued to be centered primarily within the Twin Cities metropolitan area, though health officials noted a syphilis outbreak...
Private wells and the water in them can be impacted by flooding with a risk of contamination. In addition, floodwaters can disrupt or damage the well or the supply lines connected to it. Damage may not be visible and can make cleanup and repairs difficult. • If your well is submerged and connected to a power source, be careful of the risk of electrocution. • If floodwaters get into your well, you will need to contact a licensed well contractor to inspect and clean out the well. • If floodwaters reach your well, but didn’t enter the well, t...
State Rep. Jeff Dotseth, R-Silver Township, said relief already is available for people who suffered property damage last winter, and the House approved more aid that could apply to spring flooding on a 127-0 vote and sent it to the governor for his anticipated approval. The House appropriated $40 million to the state's disaster assistance contingency account Thursday - the same day the city of Moose Lake declared a state of emergency due to flooding in the area. Dotseth said the disaster...
A 35-year-old Willow River man is faced with a first-degree felony drug charge following his arrest April 16 along Interstate 35 in Carlton County. Roger Petersen Jr. was pulled over after a Carlton County Sheriff’s Office deputy observed a traffic violation. A baggie containing 61 grams of “crystal-like” methamphetamine was found in the car, and authorities allege Petersen was also driving while intoxicated. Petersen is charged with first-degree felony possession of 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. The maximum sentence for the charg...
Unique unit highlighted at hospital U.S. Senator Tina Smith visited Community Memorial Hospital earlier this month and delivered a baby. Neither the mother nor the baby were real - both are part of the hospital's birth simulation training program, a high-tech lifelike experience that allows doctors, nurses, students and even senators to practice a wide range of live birth scenarios, from a cesarean section to breech birth to postpartum hemorrhaging. "At 3 a.m. it's them and the nurses,"...
