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 1595 - 1619 of 4091
One of the first buildings constructed in Cloquet following the historic 1918 fire is on the verge of condemnation, following a hearing in District Court in Carlton this week. Using eminent domain statutes and referring to the building in its present state as a public hazard, the city of Cloquet moved closer to purchasing the building for $8,000. The goal for the city, stated last December, is to attract new ownership that would restore and redevelop the building. The fate of the Hotel Solem...
A 43-year-old Fond du Lac Reservation man who threatened to kill family members was arrested Sunday, July 31, following a three-hour standoff with law enforcement. James Warren Bosto was subsequently charged in District Court in Duluth on Monday, Aug. 1. He faces a felony charge of threats of violence, punishable by up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Authorities responded to the home, on Mallard Drive in rural Cloquet, at around 6:30 p.m. Sunday, after residents reported Bosto being impaired and threatening to kill them. The three f...
With the start of school only a month away, local groups hope to give away free backpacks - filled with school supplies - to any child in Carlton County who needs one. And they plan to make a party of it. Thus, the first Carlton County Back to School BBQ and Backpacks event is planned for Saturday, Aug. 20, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Cloquet's Veterans Park. Children have to be pre-registered by Aug. 18; call the Salvation Army at 218-879-5447 or 218-879-1693 between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Monday thr...
The 2021 audit confirmed the city of Cloquet is in a good financial position, even after more than two years of pandemic challenges. Wipfli’s Michelle Swoboda told the Cloquet city council Tuesday that the accounting firm gave an unmodified, or clean, opinion on the city’s financial statements following the audit. According to the audit report, the city of Cloquet ended 2021 with nearly a half-million dollars more than budgeted, thanks in large part to $930,000 in federal CARES Act funds from the federal government. Rising utility fees and dec...
Firefighters responded to an early morning fire in Holyoke Township, but were unable to save the home on McCuskey Drive, which was fully engulfed by fire when they arrived. Wrenshall, Blackhoof, Kerrick and Esko fire departments, Essentia Health ambulance service, and Carlton County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the 911 call, which came in at 1:17 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 3. The resident of the home was able to safely exit the structure and did not appear to sustain any injuries. The house was a total loss. The cause of the fire is b...
Carlton County commissioners gave their support for a $400,000 broadband internet grant during their meeting Monday, July 25. The board instructed economic development director Mary Finnegan to write a letter of support for the Border-to-Border grant application being filed by Consolidated Telephone Co. Due by Thursday, Aug. 4, the grant would help cover $984,790 in costs for Brainerd-based Consolidated Telephone to lay fiber optic cable past 246 homes in northern Cloquet. Consolidated Telephone has also proposed a broadband extension to includ...
As with many other area school districts, the Barnum school board approved an increase in lunch prices, at 10 cents per meal at various levels for the lunch program during its July 26 meeting. The coming school year marks the first time in two years any students will pay for lunch, after a universal free school lunch program was allowed to expire at the end of June. Parents are encouraged to fill out forms to apply for free and reduced-price meals, something they also haven’t had to do over the past two years, when every child could have f...
With new cheers, routines, and coaches, the Cloquet High School pep squad is ready to change the face and atmosphere of Cloquet spirit this coming season. Spinning off of the longstanding dance line, the new pep squad spent last year incorporating cheer into dance routines. The pep squad's main goal is to bring school spirit to the stands. Previously, the group planned basketball outings to correspond with the pep band's appearances. But with the new routines, the pep squad was able to bring...
I wish more people would attend the city council meetings to hear about events affecting our city, the problems that are continuing, and the ripple effect on all the residents. Come to the next Kettle River city council meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 9 at the council room for an update on what is happening with the water tower project and when it will be finished. This is the time to register for the November election. There are several council positions that are up for election. It is important to get members onto the city council who want...
Well, here it is — August. So far, our summer has gone well, as we haven’t had all the terrible weather disasters other parts of the country are experiencing. We are blessed to live in this area and can only hope for better times in the disaster areas. It’s also great to see so many of the hayfields all cut and baled up. Our field was done between the rains with no rain on it at all. Great timing, Dave! There will be an open house celebration for Ray and Alice Gurske, Sheldon and the late Mario...
A 17-year-old Kettle River boy was killed last weekend after the Jeep he was driving crossed the centerline and collided with another vehicle. Sebastien Jakob Blondo was traveling east on Minnesota Highway 210 outside Aitkin when the crash occurred shortly after 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 6, a Minnesota State Patrol news release said. The driver of the other vehicle, Curtis Dean Watson, 75, of Aitkin, was taken by helicopter to St. Cloud Hospital with life-threatening injuries. The hospital did not respond to an inquiry about Watson’s c...
On March 17, witnesses estimated nearly two dozen squad cars, ambulances and firetrucks from multiple jurisdictions responded to the school campus in the heart of Esko. Someone - in Africa, it later turned out - had called in a bomb threat. There was no bomb, but that didn't change the fact that emergency responders and law enforcement waited for hours before the scene was cleared. At least two ambulances and staff responded from the Cloquet Area Fire District (CAFD). Nobody was billed for those...
An investigation into employee misconduct figures to end soon, but not before disrupting the start of the school year within the Wrenshall School District. At a time when Chromebooks and computers need to come online for teachers and roughly 350 students, the district’s information technology director is on administrative leave. Jaime Hopp is under investigation for profanely alluding to “killing” the superintendent in the staff lounge in June. Another district employee overheard the threat, which superintendent Kim Belcastro later repor...
Esko is adding a whole new layer to its annual Esko Fun Days celebration, by inviting every single graduate of the 102-year-old school to come back next week for an all-school reunion. Work toward organizing the reunion and school centennial actually began a few years ago, because the school opened in 1920. “Then Covid struck,” said Maggie Sunnarborg, a retired teacher and school board member who is one of the reunion organizers. So they decided that celebrating the centennial a couple years lat...
There's only one place a person can see a 40-foot tall bear promoting a famous brand of beer, and it's in Cloquet. The Hamm's Bear is an iconic advertising creation, and Northeastern Saloon proprietor Bert Whittington owns the largest version of the well-known bear. With the help from a few friends, Whittington inflates his giant bear on the Northeastern's lawn on Dunlap Island once each year during the Nordlager breweriana show. Breweriana shows are like a traveling museum of beer advertising...
Cloquet police and emergency personnel responded to a report of “an apparent drug overdose” Wednesday, July 27, at a residence on Loop Drive within the boundaries of the city and Fond du Lac Reservation, according to a news release from the Cloquet Police Department issued Wednesday afternoon. Efforts to revive the 16-year-old male were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at the scene. The exact cause of death is not known at this time. The investigation is still open. If anyone has any information that could assist in this inv...
The Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party is hosting “coffee with the candidates” in Moose Lake, from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, July 30 at the Soo Line Event Center, 900 Folz Blvd. The DFL True Blue Gathering will provide voters the opportunity to speak with and learn more about the candidates and their stand on critical issues facing local families. Confirmed candidates include Jen Schultz, John Peura, Pete Radosevich and Eric Olson, plus special guests. The event is timed to offer voters an int...
The emergency sewer repairs that caused a detour on Highway 61 in Thomson Township throughout July have wrapped up, but more sewer problems have been uncovered in another area of the township, leaving some residents upset and concerned. Thomson resident Joe Davidson brought his concerns to the Thomson township board of supervisors at their meeting July 21, 2022. According to Davidson, he received a letter from the township informing him that his property was in violation of the township's sewer...
The Carlton County board of commissioners voted unanimously Thursday to accept the guaranteed maximum price for the construction of the new justice center at just over $66.8 million, nearly double early estimates. County coordinator Dennis Genereau said the county passed the point of no return with this particular vote. “This was a significant decision,” Genereau told the Pine Knot News. “There is no turning back now. After eight years of planning and answering countless questions and concerns, the county board has made the decision to proceed....
In addition to community celebrations of National Night Out in Esko, Carlton, Kettle River and more, the Cloquet Police Department wants to drop by any neighborhood gathering in the city for NNO. It’s not too late to get something organized, neighbors. Send a message to the Cloquet Police Department Facebook page or call 218-879-1247 with an address and times. The nationwide community-building event was first introduced in 1984. According to the NNO official website, the gatherings provide a space for neighbors and public safety personnel to c...
Construction on a new reduced-conflict intersection where Gillette Road meets Highway 33 north of the roundabout will begin Monday, Aug. 1. The work will close access from Gillette Road to Highway 33, with access to Gillette Road and Frontage Road via the traffic signal in front of Walmart. Expect delays during peak travel times. Motorists can expect daytime lane and shoulder closures during the project, which is expected to last until October....
Although August is just around the corner, the summer festival season is abuzz with activity, with Carlton Daze this weekend, followed by Esko Fun Days, the Honey Bee Festival, Wrenshall Brickyard Days, and Ma & Pa Kettle Days over the first two weeks of August. Esko Fun Days runs Aug. 2-9 and will be combined with an all-school reunion in celebration of the school's 100th (actually 102nd, thanks to Covid) anniversary. The fun kicks off Tuesday night with a National Night Out gathering...
Efforts to revive Cloquet's West End business district continue, with city officials announcing the second round of the West End Flourish grants which aim to reactivate the historic business district through art. The grants are part of Cloquet's Artists on Main Street program, a multi-year program exploring how the arts help address the challenges affecting Main Street communities today, with funding from the Bush Foundation. Grants will be awarded to the following: • Lori Peterson was a...
Dean’s list Savannah Lyytinen of Cloquet was named to the Hamline University dean’s list for the spring 2022 term. To qualify, students must earn a GPA of 3.5 or higher and complete a minimum of 16 credits. Lyytinen is majoring in forensic psychology with a minor in criminal justice. Wrenshall’s Hannah Weiderman was named to the dean’s list at Drake University this spring. To be eligible for the deans’ list, students must have earned a GPA of 3.5 or higher during the spring 2022 semester at Drake. The following local students were named to...
At first glance, Cloquet's Kelly Avenue looks like any other street in the city: mostly tidy homes with flowers blooming outside, tall trees, cars parked in driveways and on the street, the occasional person out for a walk. But neighbors told a different story at Tuesday's Cloquet city council meeting. Close to a dozen people showed up to complain about what they see as an inadequate police response to repeated calls about two homes that make the neighborhood anything but peaceful. Longtime...
