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 3418 - 3442 of 3909
A crowd of about 50 people gathered Aug. 14 to celebrate the start of something new: the Fond du Lac Cultural Language and Learning Center. Although it's a vacant lot now, by March 2020 the site will be home to a new building for Anishinaabe language and cultural health programs. Many members of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and other local officials and construction industry representatives gathered near Tribal Center on a plot of land off Big Lake Road, eager to learn more...
Cloquet police chief Jeff Palmer resigned last week, something which will change operations at the police department very little, as he had already been on “voluntary paid leave” since April 16. Palmer, whose salary was set at $102,096.37, submitted his resignation Thursday, Aug. 8, effective the same day. Patrol commander Carey Ferrell has been acting police chief since Palmer went on leave April 16, and city administrator Aaron Reeves said he expects him to continue in that role for now. Ferre...
Cloquet city officials got some unexpected news last week. It appears that Cloquet city administrator Aaron Reeves had no authority to make any decisions regarding the CAT-7 cable access station - including closing and moving the studio, cutting staff hours and spending reserve funds to equip the city's new council chambers for live streaming video - because the authority for the management of CAT-7 staff and resources lies with the cable commission. Former Carlton County commissioner and...
A Pequot Lakes man was arrested early Saturday on charges of possession of methamphetamine. Brandon James Salgy, 34, was charged Monday, Aug. 12, with first-degree possession of drugs in Sixth District Carlton County Court. According to the criminal complaint: Fond du Lac police officer Nils Hansen spotted a male and female walking on the Black Bear Casino floor wearing backpacks, which is against policy, and told casino security, which made contact with the two. Security then advised Hansen...
A singer and pastor from Iowa was arrested Saturday, Aug. 10, by Cloquet police officers on a warrant accusing the man of fondling two minor girls. Emanuel J. Rodriguez, 44, was charged in Douglas County, Nebraska, with two counts of third-degree sexual assault of a child. An affidavit filed Friday accused Rodriguez of fondling two girls between Jan. 1, 2017, and May 17, 2019, inside two homes in Omaha previously owned by Rodriguez. The girls are now ages 12 and 11. Cloquet acting police chief...
About a dozen people gathered at Thomson Town Hall Thursday evening for a brainstorming session on both the present and the future. On Tuesday, at the National Night Out celebration in Esko, community members of all ages were standing in line to voice their opinions on the place where they live, go to school, play and maybe even work. It’s all a part of developing the township’s next Comprehensive Plan, an effort that last happened in 1999. A lot of things have changed since then. The tow...
It was quite a first meeting for interim Ward 3 Cloquet city councilor Chris Swanson last Wednesday. The agenda appeared simple and uncontroversial. Then Ward 2 councilor Sheila Lamb made a motion to deny a routine donation from Enbridge Energy to the National Night Out celebration put on by Cloquet police, asserting that if the company's Line 3 pipeline goes through, sex trafficking will increase in Cloquet and other Carlton County communities. "A $1,000 donation is not worth putting a single...
The Highway 210 project through Cromwell is unable to be delivered in 2020 as planned, and MnDOT staff will attend the Cromwell city council meeting Aug. 21 to give an update and field any questions. The project is now scheduled to be constructed in 2021. MnDOT staff will attend the Cromwell city council meeting Wednesday, Aug. 21, at 6 p.m. at the Cromwell Park Pavilion and provide more information. The public is encouraged to attend and ask questions. For more information on the project, visit http://www.dot.state.mn.us/d1/projects/hwy...
The Eighth District VFW and its 22 member posts are holding two events this weekend. Attend a picnic in Cloquet’s Veterans Park 5:30-8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 17. Open to all VFW members, auxiliary members and their families. The cost is $7 per person. There is a meeting Sunday, Aug. 18, starting at 9 a.m. at VFW Post 3979, 210 Arch Street, Cloquet. Lunch will be served after meeting....
The Minnesota Department of Health is encouraging Minnesota health care providers to be on alert for novel cases of severe lung disease potentially related to vaping and e-cigarette use among teens and young adults. Children’s Minnesota has reported finding four cases of severe lung injury in the metro area, potentially related to vaping. These cases are similar to lung disease cases recently reported in Wisconsin and Illinois, though it is too early to say whether they are connected. In Minnesota, symptoms have resulted in hospitalizations l...
With little public input, the Carlton County commissioners unanimously voted to change the Office of Auditor/Treasurer from an elected to an appointed position. Cloquet’s Clarence Badger was the only person to address the board during the public hearing, and he opposed the change. “It is not right to have just five people choose an important county leader,” Badger said. “Elected offices should not be taken away from the people’s right to choose.” The hearing was held during the Aug. 12 regular board meeting of the county commissione...
The stalemate over a joint powers agreement between the Big Lake Area Sanitary District and the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa required a mediation session this week. Results of that effort, which began Wednesday, were not available when this issue of the Pine Knot News went to press. The mediation was agreed upon by both bodies in an effort to finalize a deal that would allow a release of funding and construction of a new sewage collection system in the Big Lake area in order to...
The second joint board meeting this summer to broach the idea of consolidation between the Carlton and Wrenshall school districts, in Wrenshall Monday, went much like the meeting in July at South Terrace in Carlton. Until it didn’t. After a series of statements about goals and visions for the districts, and talk of how each district could use its facilities in a school pairing, Wrenshall’s Michele Blanchard had heard enough. It was her sentiment, soon agreed on by other Wrenshall board members, that the Carlton board seemed to keep thr...
In light of cuts to academic programs earlier this year to help with budget costs, Cloquet school board members said Monday that they were happy to vote in favor of increasing fees to help cover costs for additional coaching and theater staff. At last month’s July 8 meeting, board members had approved adding five extracurricular positions to help cover teams heavy on student athletes but light on coaching. Board members then directed activities director Paul Riess to look into ways to raise a...
Although it is summer and no classes are in session, much work continues at Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College. We are looking forward to having students back on campus and to another great year. The college’s $1.157 million bonding project is nearing completion. The Maajiigi (Start to Grow) project involves remodeling three classrooms, two that will specifically be for FDLTCC’s elementary education program and will provide flexible learning space for students. Other updates include completion of the kitchen area with brand-new equipment,...
Without much fanfare, David Danielson and David Hein made history last Wednesday. Danielson, a Fond du Lac band member and Vietnam veteran, sat on one side of a table, while the Korean vet and Veterans Administration loan officer, Hein, sat on the other. Between them they forged what will be a notable agreement: to finance a home mortgage for Danielson on tribal trust land. Hein explained that most conventional lenders won't make such a loan, because if the borrower defaults, they can't close...
It's peak produce season at the Carlton County farmers market - we recently celebrated National Farmers Market Week and are looking forward to our harvest festival in mid-September. Meanwhile, customers are happily filling their market bags with colorful, healthful fresh food each Tuesday 4-6 p.m. in Carlton and Saturday 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Cloquet. Everyone is welcome. We have a great group of produce growers behind the booths, with decades of experience among us. Our fearless leader, Mike...
Results of the recently completed 2018 city audit raised the alarm for at least one Cloquet city councilor last month, when city finance director Nancy Klassen stated that the police department came in $211,000 over its approved $2.79 million budget last year. Ward 4 councilor Kerry Kolodge compared the budget to actual spending for 2018, pointing out that general government spending was below budget by $115,000, while streets and highways were below by $70,000. Then he cited the $211,000...
An old farmer I knew passed away, and my part of the inheritance was a big box of old almanacs dating back to 1925. There were plenty of Farmer’s and Old Farmer’s almanacs and several other lesser-known books. A 1925 Swamp-Root Almanac came from the Carlton Drug Company. A 1948 De Laval was from Barnum Hardware (phone 38). A 1948 Rexall magazine with the “Perry Mason” show’s Barbara Hale on the cover was issued by Kinney Drugs in Carlton. A 1969 National Association of Retail Druggists...
Cloquet's American Legion Post 262 celebrates its 100th birthday this year, and members of the Post and Auxiliary will mark the occasion with a picnic and 50-year awards Thursday, Aug. 15. The festivities start with a social hour at 3:30 p.m. at the NorthEastern Saloon and Hotel - the Legion's new home - followed by food and drinks outside at 4:30 and awards at 5:30 p.m. Legion member Rick Maki said the local Legion is an important organization for veterans and others in the community. "We don't...
As the end of summer vacation comes into view, so does the end of the $3 million Washington Avenue reconstruction project - at least those parts of the project near Cloquet Middle School. Assistant county engineer Milt Hagen told the Pine Knot News that the project is going very well and is on schedule. "Our contract specified that the section of Washington Avenue between 14th Street and 22nd Street had to be completed by August 30," Hagen said, adding that the final portion of the project -...
On Sunday, parishioners in Carlton and Sawyer heard that their pastor, Father David Tushar, is on administrative leave after the Diocese was notified of allegations of past sexual abuse involving a minor in 1978-79, when Tushar was serving as a Holy Cross Father in Niles, Illinois. In a letter from Bishop Paul Sirba read aloud to parishioners, Sirba listed all the places Tushar has served in the Diocese of Duluth since he arrived here in 1985, and noted that no allegations have been made against Tushar in Minnesota at this time. Tushar, 70, is...
The Carlton County board of commissioners is asking for input on changing the county auditor/treasurer job from an elected position to an appointed position. A public hearing will begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 13 at the Carlton County transportation building, 1630 Highway 61 in Carlton. All interested individuals may appear and be heard there. Those unable to attend the public hearing can make comment by writing to: Carlton County Auditor/Treasurer, PO Box 130, Carlton MN 55718. Written comments must be received before the public hearing. The...
One Minnesotan is dead following an ATV accident Sunday off South Finn Road in Lakeview Township. According to a press release from the Carlton County Sheriff’s Office, at 12:06 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 4, Carlton County Dispatch received a report of an ATV accident. Elie Yang, age 36, from Brooklyn Center was riding up and down the driveway of the family cabin when he lost control and hit a tree. Yang was airlifted to Essentia in Duluth where he later died. Alcohol was not believed to be a contributing factor to the accident....
Sen. Jason Rarick (R-Pine City) announced Tuesday that Sappi Fine Paper in Cloquet was selected to receive a $100,000 grant from Minnesota’s Dual Training Grant Program. The grant will help Sappi provide 25 employees with an opportunity to advance their careers through on-the-job training in advanced manufacturing. “It is exciting to see a great company like Sappi selected for such an important grant,” said Sen. Rarick. “I’m an electrician, so I can tell you firsthand how well the apprenticeship model works for job training. Dual-training progr...
