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 1301 - 1325 of 3909
The hoax bomb and shooting calls concerning Cloquet and Esko schools as well as Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College made national news this week, when WIRED magazine published a story taking a deep dive into the who, what and why of the fake “swatting” calls that disrupted the school day twice in Cloquet and sent Esko students home this year. Locally, Cloquet police chief Derek Randall was interviewed for the story, as were Cloquet school officials Michael Cary and Hayley Kachinske. Find the story at www.wired.com/story...
A fire Friday afternoon left a downtown Carlton apartment building left a number of families without a home. The 911 call came in at roughly 3:41 p.m. Friday, Oct. 28, reporting a structure fire at 218 Chestnut Ave. The caller reported an electrical fire and that smoke was coming from the second story of the multi-family apartment complex. Upon arrival, law enforcement noticed smoke coming from the apartment and primarily from an entry door of the complex. Multiple families were evacuated and...
Struggling financially and facing declining enrollments, the Carlton and Wrenshall schools agreed to bring together all junior high and high school sports earlier this week. The move to combine sports gained approval from both school boards, with only one dissenting vote among the two boards. “We need to give this opportunity to our athletes,” Wrenshall board member Ben Johnson said, explaining there are seasons in which, going alone, the schools would not have enough players to field teams. “We...
Thanks to a reader, we’ve got a deeper understanding of Cloquet’s sales tax ballot question. Or, questions, rather. The city of Cloquet is seeking a half-percent increase to its sales tax in order to fund roughly $8 million worth of projects at Pine Valley recreation area and the city’s adjacent indoor hockey rinks, the Barn and Northwoods Credit Union Arena. But early and absentee voters, like the reader, Dan Unulock of Cloquet, have noticed the ballot doesn’t restrict the sales tax increase to one question. Instead, it’s split into two quest...
Local and regional developers have until the end of November to submit proposals that will determine the future of the condemned Hotel Solem building. Located in downtown Cloquet, the 103-year-old building was condemned earlier this year and taken over by the city. The city issued its request for proposals earlier this week, and already it's received attention, with community development director Holly Hansen lining up the first tour of what she hopes will be many more. "(Monday), I outreached...
While historical markers dot the heart of Cloquet, replete with photos and historical narratives of places such as the old city hall, the train depot and Pinehurst Park, a large part of the area’s history was overlooked when those markers were installed years ago. The history of the Native American tribes who lived here — some long before any European explorers arrived — is conspicuously absent. City officials hope to change that with help from a diverse group of area residents and the guidance of a consultant, thanks to a $50,000 grant from th...
The seven candidates running to fill three open Esko school board seats in the Nov. 8 midterm election spoke directly to community members at a candidate forum event earlier this month. The Oct. 11 event was hosted and moderated by Esko’s Parents in Education group and had a successful turnout for the group’s first attempt at a candidate forum. The Esko school theater was nearly filled with parents, teachers and community members. The incumbent candidates, Margaret Sunnarborg and Todd Rengo, along with the five other candidates seeking election...
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, the Department of Natural Resources and the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa announced an enforcement action this week against Enbridge Energy for water quality violations during Line 3 pipeline construction. Those include accidental releases of drilling mud at a dozen locations, and two other aquifer breaches at LaSalle Creek in Hubbard County and near the Fond du Lac Reservation. They also include discharges of stormwater from construction... 
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Assigned by the local diocese's bishop to Queen of Peace Catholic Church 15 months ago, the Rev. Nick Nelson praised his fortune. "For me, who thinks beauty, who thinks the physical appearance of the church, especially inside, is so important, I was really grateful to be here," Father Nelson said. "I would struggle at some of the more modern churches, to be honest. They're less sacred." Inside Queen of Peace's ornate nave, where parishioners gather for worship, a person can feel small...
Carlton County Public Health and Human Services director Dave Lee got approval to restructure the working relationship between staff at the Moose Lake and Cloquet PHHS offices at the Carlton County board of commissioners meeting Monday, Oct. 10. The Moose Lake office will be closed on Fridays starting soon. None of the Moose Lake staff will lose their jobs. The goal is to handle cases according to types of issues rather than based on where a client lives to improve service and give client service a location of choice. Clients will still be...
Voters in Cloquet will see two sales tax proposals on their ballots during early voting and the midterm general election Nov. 8. Carlton County voters will have to pay attention, too, because they're part of half of this. The ballot questions both ask voters to raise the existing sales tax by 0.5% - half-a-penny per dollar to raise $8 million in project funds for the city of Cloquet, and another half-penny countywide to fund the $66 million Carlton County Justice Center already under...
At least half of the mini golf mystery proffered in the Sept. 30 issue of the Pine Knot News has been solved - its origin story - but the mystery of where (and by whom) the historic mini golf set was taken remains unknown. Readers may recall that a Cloquet "landmark" mini golf set was set up for the West End Flourish event Sept. 24, after an employee of Lyn's Auto Body found it in a dumpster behind the U.S. Bank building a couple weeks before. The homemade set consisted of six mini golf holes,...
An amicable gathering last week brought together most of the Wrenshall school board candidates in a public forum for the first time. As it concluded, the six candidates in attendance expressed pride in the school, and appreciation for one another. It stood in contrast to the tumult which has mired the board throughout the past year. But in subtler ways it also further illuminated the chasm between four relative newcomers and incumbents Deb Washenesky and Jack Eudy, along with board appointee...
An observant police officer and a likely DNA match led to the arrest of a 43-year-old Cloquet man last week on suspicion of trying to strangle a woman in her home this summer. Cloquet detectives and officers arrested Brendan Gareth Smith Friday afternoon after an extensive investigation of a home invasion June 7. Smith appeared in Sixth District Carlton County Court Monday, Oct. 10, charged with first-degree burglary and third-degree assault, both felonies. He was granted a public defender and bond was set at $250,000. According to the...
A request to allow the local industrial landfill to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week for two specific customers was approved by the Cloquet planning commission Tuesday. The motion passed by a 3-1 vote, with new commissioner Michelle Wick the only “no” vote. Wick lives near the SKB Environmental landfill in the neighborhood near Hilltop Park, and had suggested the commission table the request so she could have time to do some research. The vote is an advisory one: the final decision rests with the Cloquet city council. City pla...
Blackhoof Township residents have collected nearly 100 local signatures on a petition opposing a new “green” cemetery advertising its services on land in the township. Residents again attended Tuesday’s county board meeting, this time to object to the approximately 20-acre cemetery, Loving Earth Memorial Gardens, being established adjacent to eight relatively new homes. The cemetery caters to clientele wishing to be buried naturally without embalming or cremation. Matt Connell originally bought the land but does not live here. The issue has p...
The Esko school district is planning a few projects that will give students and the greater community an opportunity to stay active year-round. The Esko school board has been working on plans for a new fitness center over the last few months, something that was identified near the top of the list on the district's 10-year facilities plan. The board shared some initial plans for the new fitness center at the meeting Monday, Oct. 10. In a presentation given by ICS, the district's building project...
The Thomson Township board of supervisors is continuing to seek improvements for the township’s sewer system in order to prevent future emergency repairs, like the one in late July 2022 on Highway 61 in front of the Esko school. At their meeting Thursday, Oct. 6, the board approved a project, to be completed by July 1, 2023, that will update sewer lines in the area surrounding where the emergency repairs were done in summer of 2022, to prevent a similar situation again. Township engineer Joe Jurewicz recommended the township work with Visu S...
Another case of measles was confirmed in Minnesota earlier this month, bringing the total to 13 since June. All of the cases are among unvaccinated children, ranging in age from 2-years-old to kids in their early teens, state health officials said in a press release. Measles is a very contagious respiratory virus that typically starts with a high fever, cough, runny nose and red, watery eyes and later causes a rash, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While almost all th... Website
When Cory Drickhamer pulled in for the start of business at the MarksMan Trading Post one day earlier this week, there was a customer right behind him. Within moments, the pawn shop had five more used rifles to sell, including a Remington .30-06 pump carbine - a well-regarded deer hunting rifle. "I bought five guns in the first 10 minutes I was open," Drickhamer said. "I didn't even count my cash register drawer yet." MarksMan Trading Post celebrates its one-year anniversary in November. When...
A reader residing along 14th Street in Cloquet messaged to note how progress on the street’s reconstruction had reached the paving stages this week following a summer spent detouring due to underground utility upgrades. “Yippy! No more detouring,” wrote the tipster. Only, not quite yet. The paving had proceeded from the roundabout at 14th Street and Washington Avenue north toward Prospect Avenue. Crews were continuing to rebuild curbs and sidewalks south of Washington Avenue along 14th Street toward Tall Pine Lane. Street repaving will follow....
Gathering last week capped cemetery saga that began in 2017 The tribal chairman of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa called for new protections for Native American burial grounds during a community gathering last week. Speaking alongside the St. Louis River, near a site where burial grounds were disturbed by a state highway project in 2017, Kevin Dupuis was joined by a crowd of more than 125 mostly Indigenous people in the Fond du Lac neighborhood in Duluth on Friday, Sept. 30....
The Cloquet City Council took up the topic of food trucks at its meeting Tuesday at City Hall, wondering if it should amend an ordinance to allow the cultural phenomenon better access to city park events. Councilor Kerry Kolodge raised the issue after having heard from a food truck operator who was denied access to a large bike race last month at the Pine Valley recreation area. The city currently doesn’t allow food trucks at parks unless it’s a city-sponsored event, such as the Fourth of Jul...
Area students descend upon Cloquet Forestry Center Some of the first morning frosts of the season didn't put a chill on the enthusiasm of local fifth-graders participating in the Conservation Education Days at the University of Minnesota's Cloquet Forestry Center last week. More than 500 students from eight Carlton County school districts spent a full day learning outside their usual classrooms at the educational event focused on natural science topics Sept. 28-29. The annual event for...
The palm trees in Fort Myers, Florida left standing following Hurricane Ian last week don't look like palm trees anymore, said Cloquet's Sam Baker. "They look like telephone poles," Baker said. "They lost all their fronds." Baker was one of at least two college students from Cloquet, including Sam Buytaert, who were evacuated from the west coast of Florida last week, as Hurricane Ian made its way to shore. Initial forecasts had predicted the hurricane would hit the Tampa Bay area - where Buytaer...
