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 2714 - 2738 of 3909
An August scramble like no other is on across Carlton County this August as schools prepare to reopen for the year. School boards, staff and administrators are meeting this week and next to make almost-final decisions after it was announced last week by Gov. Tim Walz that districts will have discretion on how school days will go while still in the grips of the Covid-19 pandemic. This week, more fodder was tossed in as the Minnesota State High School League on Tuesday moved the volleyball and foo...
Pine Knot News intern Caleb Swanson asked Carlton County students how they feel about plans to reopen schools this fall: "I don't want to go back because online was easier for me. But on the other hand, I do want to go back to be with my friends and just be in school again. The one thing I do not want Esko to do is to keep kids in the same classroom every day." Caden Grayson, Esko sophomore "I for sure want everything to go back to normal but I doubt that will happen. I'm hoping Esko still has...
Slowly but surely, the Cloquet Police Department is getting back up to full strength. On Tuesday, the department got one more spot filled when the Cloquet City Council unanimously approved the appointment of David O'Connor as the new patrol commander. Police Chief Derek Randall said the appointment will bring the department up to 18 sworn officers (out of 24 budgeted positions), and fill the remaining vacant administrative position. O'Connor comes to the job after working as a police officer...
In an agreement filed July 29, former Carlton County attorney Thom Pertler waived his right to a hearing and agreed to disbarment for committing “professional misconduct warranting public discipline.” That could change, though. The final decision would be up to the Minnesota Supreme Court, which has taken the discipline under advisement. The Minnesota Supreme Court could accept the recommendation or take an entirely different path, according to Susan Humiston, director of the Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility, who filed the pet...
The south State Highway 33 corridor will be seeing more changes in the future, specifically where Gillette Road and Frontage Road open onto the highway south of the Walmart traffic lights in Cloquet. With the anticipated construction of the new Essentia Clinic on Gillette Road west of Highway 33 and bustling business traffic along the Frontage Road on the east side, city officials said they want to be proactive. "We are trying to get ahead of the potential traffic impacts that we know are...
A Barnum man sustained life threatening injuries in a crash Tuesday on Highway 2, in Solway Township. According to the Minnesota State Patrol, Dominic Lisic, 23, of Barnum was driving a 2006 Pontiac G6 westbound on Highway 2 and drove through a stop sign at the intersection of Highway 194. He was struck in a T-bone collision by a 2010 Dodge Ram driven by Ricky Odette, 55, who was pulling a trailer. The incident report states that alcohol was a factor with Lisic, and not with Odette. Lisic was transported to Essentia St. Mary’s Hospital in D...
Carlton county land commissioner Greg Bernu is asking local residents who receive mystery seed packets in the mail to not open them. Instead, drop them off at Bernu’s office in the County Highway Building at 1630 County Road 61 in Carlton, and he will send them to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture for inspection/destruction. The MDA continues to receive reports of citizens getting unsolicited seed packages in the mail. To date, over 700 Minnesotans have made reports to the department. The packages have contained a variety of seeds. S...
The Minnesota Department of Corrections reports it will close its two smallest prisons - in Willow River and Togo - because of a budgetary crisis, the DOC announced Monday. The move comes after the legislature adjourned from the recent special session without action on the agency's supplemental budget request. The Department of Corrections faces a budget shortfall of approximately $14 million in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2021. The combined annual budget for Togo and Willow River is...
Lake Superior Community Health Center is bringing its focus on affordable dentistry to a new location in Carlton. The facility, located at 210 Third Street in downtown Carlton, has been a dental practice for years, but under the direction of LSCHC, access will be expanded for those with Medicaid and those without insurance in surrounding communities. “In the Carlton and Cloquet area, nearly 45 percent of residents have not accessed dental care in the last year,” said CEO Dayle Patterson. “We hope this is the first of many expansions for this...
The B&B Market food train is still rolling, and closing in on nearly $110,000 total monetary donations since the train left the station in March. Pictured here is B&B owner John Lind (left) and Rotary Club of Cloquet president Dave Kauma, holding a representation of a $1,331 check from the club recently at the local gas and grocery store. B&B Market was the spark for an outpouring of community support for those in need of food, particularly during the initial months of the Covid-19 pandemic...
New, for those voting by mail: you no longer need a witness to sign your ballot. Ballots need to be returned to the courthouse by Aug.11, or at least postmarked by then to be counted. Also, remember that you must choose a political party and vote only that party. You can’t cross over in a primary election. There are three 4-year Cromwell-Wright school board positions to be filled beginning January 20, 2021. The terms of Angela Anderson, Tim Homstad and Brian Granholm are up. If you are i...
As children, we'd pile into our family car and head north from Minneapolis on Highway 65 for Cromwell to visit my grandfather. After 30 miles or so, leaving the suburbs behind, my father began to scout the roadsides. Braking firmly, to my mother and brothers' groans, he'd pull over, call for his roomy hat, and head for the roadside chokecherry tree. I chose to scramble after him. That was my introduction to berry picking. As my mother later quipped, "you've been bit by the berry bug and you'll n...
The University of Minnesota Extension Service is taking applications for those wanting to become master gardener volunteers. Applications are being accepted for the Carlton County program until Oct. 31. Individuals selected for the program begin an internship that starts with master gardener core course training in January. It is taught online through the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. Instructors are Extension educators and faculty. Following the course, interns will complete volunteer service in the first year, working with...
Following a request for a welfare check at a residence in Thomson Township at 12:45 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 6, the Minnesota State Patrol located a seriously injured adult female who was determined to be the victim of an assault. Esko Fire, Cloquet Area Fire District, and Life Link III Air Ambulance tended to, and transported the victim. During the course of the investigation, a suspect, a woman, was identified and located in the Twin Cities metro area. The suspect was taken into custody and transported to the Carlton County Jail. Preliminary...
A petition duel continued this week on the website Change.org considering the use of the nickname "Eskomos" for the Esko school district. Both begun by students at Esko High School, one petition says a name change should be considered while the other says to leave the name alone. It joins a chorus of debate in a time of great social upheaval and awareness. This month, the Canadian Football League team in Edmonton announced it would stop using its Eskimos nickname. Earlier this year, the company...
There's been at least one unexpected side effect of coronavirus in the city of Cloquet and nationwide: new single-family housing projects are already significantly higher than last year's total. Cloquet Community Development director Holly Hansen said the increase was somewhat unexpected but a welcome surprise. She credits the low interest rates for at least part of the boom. "We scratch our heads sometimes," Hansen told the Pine Knot last week. "We know there's a Covid recession going on right...
Minneapolis Public Schools students will not go back to school in a traditional manner this fall, instead starting out the school year virtually. District officials announced their plan to resume full distance learning at a board meeting Tuesday. A final vote is set to take place in August. The decision comes ahead of a delayed statewide announcement that Gov. Tim Walz was expected to make Thursday. By comparision, many schools in more rural areas, like in Carlton County, are considering plans that would combine distance learning days with...
Members of the Cloquet Combined Honor Guard stood on an overpass over Interstate 35 in Cloquet Friday, July 24 as the body of a Korean War veteran from Superior was being brought home after his remains were identified. After 70 years, Francis Rochon was laid to rest at Summit Cemetery in Foxboro. Wisconsin governor Tony Evers announced Friday that U.S. and state flags would be flown at half-staff on Saturday. According to the governor's office, Army Cpl. Francis J. Rochon of Superior was buried...
A 4-year-old girl driving an ATV was injured Thursday, July 23 after being hit by a pickup on Stenman Road in Esko, just south of Interstate 35. According to the Carlton County Sheriff’s Office, dispatch received a 911 call at 1:39 p.m. Thursday about a girl hit by a northbound pickup at 45 Stenman Road as she came from a driveway on a child-sized ATV and entered the roadway. Carlton County deputies, Esko and Cloquet Area Fire District responders were dispatched to the scene along with the Minnesota State Patrol. A report states a Chevrolet p...
The Cloquet Area Chamber of Commerce is expecting a shipment of 12,000 disposable masks from the state this week and expects to distribute them to northern Carlton County businesses to help customers comply with the recent order for Minnesotans to wear masks in indoor public settings. There is no charge to businesses to receive the masks, which will be distributed in lots of 100. Distribution will take place at the chamber office. The expected pick-up day is Tuesday, Aug. 4, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Those who want masks should email the chamber...
Emily Tracy and her family are trying to change the rules around chickens in Cloquet city limits. She has written a petition and it is circulating the internet and gaining traction in the community. The petition explains the many blessings chickens can bring to a home, while still expressing an urge to change the current ordinance allowing farm animals on large lots only in certain parts of the city. "When it comes to the benefits, well, they are endless," Tracy said. She has had her chickens...
Trail rider groups and local homeowners concerned about noise from disrespectful ATV and dirt bike enthusiasts who literally roar onto the access road of the Moose Lake Old Soo Line pit mostly approved of the ordinance passed unanimously by the Carlton County board on Monday. About 15 people came to give their input on the issue. Eric Senarighi of the Carlton County Riders ATV club addressed the board, offering to pay for a portable decibel reader to check machines that have loud mufflers....
Being a victim of or witness to a crime is something we all hope to avoid. But should that situation befall the residents of Carlton County, it is reassuring to know there is an individual working in the Victim/Witness Services Division who will offer support and guidance throughout the judicial process. John Parenteau, the most recent person to hold this position stepped into the job in January. Parenteau carries a wealth of experience to this office, having spent 28 years as sheriff’s d...
My husband, Bob, came home last week after six weeks away. He reached his physical and occupational therapy goals and was ready to be discharged. He will now be doing therapy at home as the nurses and therapists will be coming to the house. He thanks everyone for the many, many cards of encouragement. It is great to have him home again. Now, I will be home for a week before my knee replacement surgery, which is scheduled for Aug. 5, but I’m not holding my breath, as it has been postponed t...
A new store is doing its best to fill the gap left by the departure of the popular Goodwill and Salvation Army thrift stores in Cloquet. The Highway 45 Thrift Store opened in June. The for-profit store, owned by Gregg Wait and Jill Rousseau, has been in the works for a while. "We've been trying to open for two years," Rousseau said. Wait and Rousseau had been known for running auctions that past decade. "We have a place on Carlton Avenue and that's originally where [Jill] wanted to start the sto...
