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
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At the start of the fourth quarter of the school year, Wrenshall English teacher Joel Swanson drew a 13-foot line on the classroom whiteboard, representing the lives of this year's seniors from kindergarten through senior year. Both Wrenshall valedictorians Jack Riley and Lexis Swanson spoke about it in their commencement speeches Friday afternoon. "He marked out the last three inches of that 13 feet - the time we had remaining as students here. He told us not to take those three inches for...
Barnum & Carlton graduation photos...
During a break in consolidation committee meetings, Carlton and Wrenshall school boards have continued to negotiate via written communications. The most recent letter came from the Carlton board May 14 in response to Wrenshall’s April 8 proposal to move the consolidation’s start date to July 2026. The Wrenshall board had pushed the date back from 2025 after learning the Carlton superintendent Donita Stepan’s contract runs through the 2025-26 school year. Wrenshall had previously stipulated it did not want any long-term contracts spilling over...
Come July 1, Cloquet's most popular downtown bar, The Jack, will be changing hands. Longtime owner Adam Bailey is selling to brothers Ryan Lindstrom and Zach Zezulka, owners of Carmen's Bar & Restaurant. Both are Cloquet grads, both know their way around a bar. But first things first: The Jack will still participate in the annual Labor Day parade, although no one knows if the elaborate dance routines often starring the bar owner will continue. "We've got some fun ideas, a few things up our...
City planner and zoning administrator Al Cottingham received a round of applause during Tuesday's Cloquet City Council meeting - a meeting he hopes will be his last. Cottingham is retiring June 6, after 12 years with the city of Cloquet. "I will very very much miss seeing you here every day and keeping the rest of us on point," said city administrator Tim Peterson. Cottingham said he will miss the people, the job not so much. "It's time to retire and go do some things that I've been putting on...
Cloquet High School held its awards convocation on May 8 and announced the following award and scholarship winners at the school, including those pictured on Page 9 of this week's Pine Knot News The George and Helen C. Medich Family Medical Scholarship: Kiley Issendorf Floy Gilman Scholarship: Grace Swanson Noah Feehan Memorial Scholarship: Owen Brenner and Mason Sundquist Cloquet Area Eagles Club Scholarship: Willow Putnam and Clara Wheale Bausch & Lomb Science Award: Josh Bleskacek Lake...
On May 5, a large group of Esko High School seniors were awarded a variety of academic scholarships from local agencies and foundations, including the Esko Educational Foundation. Principal Greg Hexum said Esko's Class of 2024 is collectively receiving in excess of $1.5 million in academic awards from postsecondary institutions. The recipients are: The Santo Antonutti Family Scholarship: Gino Bertogliat The Julian "Bert" Bertogliat Family Scholarship: Gino Bertogliat Memorial Blood Bank...
On May 13, the school board voted to accept the employment of Dr. Marcia Nelson as CAAEP principal Connie Hyde’s replacement at a salary of $111,576. “Dr. Nelson is being recommended due to her strong background and experience as a school principal and with alternative learning centers,” superintendent Michael Cary wrote in his recommendation. Nelson most recently worked in the educational specialist program at St. Mary’s University in Rochester, Minnesota. She has 30 years of experience as a teacher and administrator in K-12 schools, with a...
Members of the Carlton County board and the Fond du Lac tribal council are scheduled to meet in June. The entities meet twice annually, and the topic of how the county ought to host the meeting came up during the board’s March 14 meeting in Carlton. When Fond du Lac conducts the meetings, attendees are greeted with a catered meal. Historically, that has not been the case when the meetings are hosted by the county. “When they come here, we get them donuts and strawberries,” said county coordinator Dennis Genereau, who sought state guida...
The filing period for elected offices opened this week, and two Cloquet city councilors are already on the list to run again. Ward 4 councilor Kerry Kolodge and Ward 3 councilor Iris Keller both filed affidavits of candidacy at City Hall on Tuesday. The Ward 3 race is for two years only. Keller was appointed to fill the seat until the next election when former councilor Chris Swanson moved outside of Ward 3; this election will determine who represents Ward 3 for the remainder of that four-year term. Other Cloquet City Council positions up for...
Most government offices including Cloquet and Carlton County will be closed for the Memorial Day holiday Monday, May 27. This includes County Courthouse offices, County Government Services Building, County Transportation Department, Human Services, Public Health, Motor Vehicle License Bureau, Veterans Service Office, the University of Minnesota Extension Service/Carlton County and the Hwy 210 Transfer Station....
The Thomson Township board of supervisors joined Esko Community Education, the Esko school district, Esko Hoops Club and several other businesses and organizations contributing to the construction of an outdoor multisports court after it voted to donate $20,000 to the project at last Thursday's meeting. Two years in the making, the township's donation brings the project - an all-purpose court with two side-by-side basketball courts, two pickleball courts and four four square courts estimated at...
A 32-year-old Moose Lake man is in Carlton County Jail awaiting sentencing following a guilty plea in March to felony criminal sexual conduct. The charge is related to a 2023 incident involving a vulnerable 15-year-old girl. Justin Eugene Arbuckle pled guilty March 6 to third-degree penetration of a victim under 18 — impaired/incapacitated/helpless. The victim is on the autism spectrum and requires use of an individualized education program in school. She was considered vulnerable, “easily manipulated,” and in need of supervision, accor...
The Minnesota Legislature stumbled toward a tumultuous end late Sunday night in a chorus of shouting and snap votes in a final day sure to damage the ability of the parties to work in concert in the future. Lawmakers wrapped up their last day of voting without approving a substantial borrowing plan to pay for construction projects or one to put an equal rights amendment before voters. The House will reconvene Monday for retirement speeches and other formalities before breaking for the year. In an unprecedented display of discord, shouting rang... 
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The Carlton County Farmers Market opens Saturday, June 1 in front of Premiere Theatres in Cloquet. This season we're joined by a new generation of farmers and producers offering a wonderful variety of homegrown and handmade products. Heidi Wanzek and Em Klein created Prairie Rose Farm and Floral in Mahtowa. They are both multitalented artists with skills ranging from welding to wedding floral design. Like the other farmers at the market, they are dedicated to regenerative agriculture and use...
Roundabouts are off the table, state officials told residents at a May 9 informational meeting on the proposed reconstruction of Minnesota Highway 33. The estimated $3.2 million project will include complete reconstruction of the four-lane highway from Big Lake Road to the north side of the St. Louis River Bridge. Replacement of the intersections at Carlton Avenue and Cloquet Avenue with enhanced signal lights was revealed Thursday as the recommended "preferred concept," said Angie Bolstad,...
Travelers on Interstate 35 between Hinckley and Duluth should expect traffic delays due to several construction projects this summer, according to the Minnesota Department of Transportation. Drivers will encounter single lane, head-to-head traffic just south of Minnesota Highway 210 in Carlton County until the end of August and near Hinckley through October. In the city of Duluth, intermittent lane closures are expected for bridge repair work at 40th Avenue West, Twin Ports Interchange work, and pavement repairs between Lake Avenue and 21st Ave...
The ninth annual Burgers & Bikes & Beer fundraiser hosted by the Sweet Spokes Cycling Team for the American Diabetes Association is 6-8 p.m. Monday, May 20, at The Rendezvous Sports Bar & Grill in Cloquet. Free to attend and open to everyone, family friendly. All funds raised help in the fight against diabetes … and everyone knows someone living with diabetes. The Sweet Spokes Cycling Team, based in Cloquet, has raised more than $285,000 in the fight against diabetes over the past 13 years, and is hoping to be among the top teams this year a...
Public libraries in Cloquet, Carlton and Moose Lake will be providing mosaic art take-and-create kits through May. This art experience, created by Chisholm artist Rebekkah Anderson through Diletto, combines the art of storytelling through both mosaics and barn quilts....
A chance to celebrate roughly $7 million in improvements to the Cromwell-Wright School brought out students and community members Monday. Cromwell graduates Tracey Goranson, 62, Pauly Granholm, 65, and the Koivistos - Ken, 77, and Sue, 74 - gathered on the edge of the student body, bright blue skies overhead. "It's exciting to see the progress," Goranson said. "It's been a long time coming," Granholm added. "I've been looking forward to this, to see the expressions of the kids," Ken Koivisto...
The Carlton school board, fresh from sending a four-day school week proposal to the state for approval, returned to the issue of consolidation with Wrenshall. At Monday’s working session, superintendent Donita Stepan was directed to answer a Wrenshall letter which proposed consolidation in summer 2026, instead of an initial consideration of July 1, 2025. Wrenshall’s correspondence was positive in tone, promising that Wrenshall would “lean into all sharing opportunities,” although declaring their board members had agreed with each other that the...
Esko school board members set an open house for the new fitness center for 4-6 p.m. June 10. Expect to see lots of "Esko" and "Sisu" logos decorating the space, located on the south side of the school. "By June 10, all our equipment and furniture will be set up, and I believe our partner, Essentia, has what they need," said superintendent Aaron Fischer. "It's a big deal for Essentia too." At the same meeting Monday, board members voted unanimously to spend almost a half-million dollars to turn...
A larger-than-expected pipe helped unjam a planned apartment project being held up by sewer capacity issues in Thomson Township. Josh Evans, an assistant engineer with the township’s contracted engineering company, AE2S, had recommended a halt on any new construction in Thomson Township at the board meeting April 18, because he believed the sewer system there was at or exceeding capacity based on modeling and flow data. At the time, township supervisors had refused to issue a moratorium on new construction, but they did delay a vote on the 2...
A notice on social media last week from the Moose Lake Police Department indicated that the office would no longer be “open on a daily basis.” It was the sort of thing that can cause consternation in a community. In February, the city contracted with Carlton County for its law enforcement — a decision which meant disbanding its long-standing police department. The contract between the city and Carlton County is still being negotiated, as the county works toward bringing aboard the four deputies agreed upon to cover the city. But Carlton County...
Is your digestive system not working the way it should? Do you struggle to lose weight or eliminate daily, get bloated easily, react to certain foods or feel tired and run down? Are your periods a problem? Do you struggle with acne, even though puberty is in the rearview mirror? Then maybe it's time to have a functional medicine visit with Cloquet's Natalie Swanson, of Serenity Wellness. "Clients often come to see me when they want to look into their health from a different angle. They have...
