City of Cloquet: Free pickup of brush begins after Memorial Day

As residents continue to clean up trees damaged by heavy winter snow, Cloquet city councilors voted Tuesday to help its citizens dispose of that debris. Starting May 30, local contractor 3D Construction will drive every street within city limits to pick up brush, tree branches and tree trunks (in pieces no longer than 5 feet) from the roadside.

“The contractor won’t skip your house because you have a 6-foot tree, but we want to be able to load it into a truck without having someone working out there with a chainsaw for 30 minutes just to get it into the truck,” said public works director Caleb Peterson.

Pickup will likely last a month, but there won’t be a schedule.

“Honestly, we don’t know how long this will take,” Peterson said.

Hence, the debris must be next to the road by the end of the day May 29 and remain there until pickup. The contractor will not enter private property to collect brush, so it must be placed within reach of the street.

3D Construction will not collect piles of leaves, pine needles or grass clippings. Those can be brought to the city’s brush and leaf disposal site behind the public works garage, 410 Armory Road, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 7:30-11 a.m. Fridays. The city will also allow brush disposal at the snow storage site at the corner of Carlton Avenue and Highway 45 through June 30.

The roadside pickup service will be paid for by the city, which expects to be reimbursed for 75 percent of its costs because of the state of emergency approved by Gov. Tim Walz after the storms Dec. 13-15. Public works director Caleb Peterson said he expects the cost could be as high as $100,000, with Cloquet’s share at $25,000. Besides the curbside pickup, the city will incur the expense of chipping and disposing of the woody debris plus cleaning up the extensive damage at Pine Valley park.

Police promotions

Councilors unanimously approved two police officer promotions. Kyle Voltzke and Andy Wappes were promoted to become police patrol sergeants. Police commander Adam Reed said there were several skilled applicants, who each had to submit a letter of interest and a written personal leadership philosophy statement. Candidates were then interviewed by a public panel made up of police department command staff, members of the Citizens Advisory Board, the Carlton County Sheriff’s Office chief deputy and a lieutenant from the Minnesota State Patrol. Candidates also presented for 15 minutes on the implementation of body-worn cameras.

The panel selected Wappes and Voltzke as its top two candidates. Both men have worked for the department for several years. “They are knowledgeable and experienced officers and are well-suited for this position,” Reed said.

In other matters Tuesday, Mayor Roger Maki made proclamations honoring National Police Week (May 14-21) and Emergency Medical Services week (May 21-27).

The council meets the first and third Tuesdays of each month at 6 p.m. at Cloquet City Hall. The meetings are also livestreamed on the city’s website and run on CAT-7 multiple times.