CLOQUET — While the residents and their pets are fine lightning caused considerable damage to a house on Washington Avenue firefighters found "significant damage to the interior and exterior of the house likely due to the lightning streak," the fire district said The fire district said that the residents and their two dogs safely self-evacuated and the home was ventilated to clear the smoke Fire district crews also checked nearby structures for any signs of gas leaks or fire No other information was available as the incident remains under investigation Assisting the Cloquet Area Fire District at the scene were the Cloquet Police Department and local utility companies April 17 to include that a neighbor's doorbell camera captured the lightning strike CARLTON — A man has been sentenced to 12 ½ years in prison for repeatedly sexually assaulting a girl over several years was convicted by a Carlton County jury in January of five counts of criminal sexual conduct against a child under the age of 14 He received the sentence from Judge Amy Lukasavitz at a hearing in State District Court last week a teacher and a school counselor of the abuse at the time stating she “didn’t want him doing it to her anymore.” The child said the defendant had touched her inappropriately and had been doing so for at least two years During a follow-up forensic interview conducted by First Witness Child Advocacy Center went on to describe additional specific incidents and a common pattern of events over the multi-year span but a 12-member jury found him guilty of one count of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and four counts of second-degree criminal sexual conduct Defense attorneys Andrew Poole and Brent Olson filed a motion asking the court to depart from state guidelines and place Owens on probation 16 letters of support filed on his behalf by family members and friends had been free on a $300,000 bond for much of the duration of the case Owens is a member of this community,” the attorneys wrote “He owns a small business and continues to play a large part in the lives of his children He has the unwavering support of his loved ones and other members in this community It's particularly striking just how much support Mr Owens has maintained throughout this process and still maintains post-trial.” But Carlton County Attorney Lauri Ketola said the letters showed only that Owens has “deceived those closest to him.” She noted the crimes were not isolated events “Not once did he express remorse for what he has done to (the victim),” the prosecutor said just as he had done during his trial testimony His continued inability and/or unwillingness to take responsibility for the harm he caused to (the victim) and the harm he continues to inflict on both of their families evidences a current inability for rehabilitation and community supervision.” Ketola requested that the court impose consecutive terms for a total of approximately 27-32 years Lukasavitz declined requests from both sides sentencing Owens to concurrent guideline terms totaling 150 months He’ll be required to spend a little over eight years in custody before becoming eligible for supervised release Owens also must register as a predatory offender and will be subject to lifetime conditional release If you or someone you know is in immediate danger First Witness Child Advocacy Center: 218-727-8353, firstwitness.org/contact-us National Sexual Assault Hotline: 24/7 hotline: 800-656-4673 Center Against Sexual and Domestic Abuse (CASDA): serves Duluth, Superior and Ashland, Bayfield and Douglas counties; 24/7 hotline 800-649-2921; submit a help request at casda.org/get-help Program for Aid to Victims of Sexual Assault (PAVSA): serves southern St Sexual Assault Program of Northern St. Louis County: serves northern St Louis County; 218-749-4725; leave a message and an advocate will be contacted 24/7 Family Pathways: serves Carlton and Pine counties; 24/7 hotline 800-338-7233 Support Within Reach: serves Aitkin and Itasca counties; hotline 866-747-5008 North Shore Horizons: serves Lake County; 24/7 hotline 218-834-5924 Violence Prevention Center: serves Cook County; 24/7 hotline 218-387-1237 Friends Against Abuse: serves Koochiching County; 24/7 hotline 888-344-3264 Fond du Lac Reservation: 24/7 hotline 218-348-1817 Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa: Grand Portage Human Services 218-475-2453 Bois Forte Tribal Government–Victim Services Program: emergency cell 218-248-0067 CARLTON — Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College and REACH were honored at the Cloquet Area Chamber of Commerce annual meeting and banquet on April 24 at the Black Bear Casino Resort Otter Creek Event Center which is a Cloquet-based nonprofit providing youth with volunteer mentors received the annual Small Business of the Year award which has approximately 900 on-campus students and is the only institution in the nation that is both a tribal college and a state community college received the annual Large Business of the Year award Cloquet pitcher Allie Jones didn’t just help her own cause at the plate she amounted to most of it as the Lumberjacks won a tight Lake Superior Conference softball game 2-1 over Rock Ridge on Wednesday Jones had two of Cloquet’s three hits and both RBIs in addition to striking out 12 and allowing one earned run on four hits in a complete game She delivered RBI singles that scored Paige Goranson in both the third and fifth innings After Jones escaped a first inning in which she allowed three hits but no Rock Ridge runs the Wolverines didn’t have a baserunner until Chance Colbert led off the sixth with a walk She scored on Ayla Troutwine’s single up the middle but that was all the offense the Wolverines mustered Troutwine had two of Rock Ridge’s four hits Wolverines pitcher Taylor Morley allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits The Rails busted out big-time in the fourth inning scoring 10 runs to overwhelm the Hunters on Wednesday Proctor pitcher Savannah Baker allowed two runs on six hits in five innings East came painfully close to a win on two different occasions but couldn’t finish it off on Wednesday East carried a 3-1 lead to the bottom of the seventh inning but Abigail Helms delivered a key two-out hit that tied the game Addison Fisher laid down a bunt that brought in the winning run Jossie Filiatrault took the hard-luck loss despite three of four runs against her being unearned Emma McDowell struck out 15 for Hibbing without a walk allowing three runs (one earned) on five hits East led 4-3 and got the first two outs of the seventh inning only for Rapids to record four consecutive singles with Claire Larson delivering the walk-off hit Lauren Pozniak and Kylie Zwak had two hits apiece for East Madison Ollman held the Raptors to just one hit in the rout Anna Klemmer went 4-for-4 and drove in five runs for the Mariners who have won seven games in a row.BASEBALL Connor Pearce pitched a four-hit shutout for Esko on Wednesday Tyler Reid went 2-for-3 for the Wolverines The Greyhounds couldn’t get out of trouble in the bottom of the seventh and lost on a walk-off hit on Wednesday in Elk River East scored six runs in the fifth inning and led 8-3 but Elk River scored in each of its last three at-bats to get back into the game the Elks scored three times and won the game before the Greyhounds recorded an out Breck Burns was 3-for-4 and a homer short of the cycle Liam Brooks and Sjoren Helland finished with two hits apiece Both sides got something from a twinbill Wednesday at Al Nyberg Field in Hibbing a two-run single from Adam McGrew in the sixth inning broke a 1-1 tie Brett Lapcinski went 3-for-4 with an RBI for Denfeld while Blake Riccio recorded a pair of hits for Hibbing Denfeld pitcher Vinny Udd allowed just one unearned run on four hits walked five and came one batter short of a complete game Hibbing put up five runs in the early innings and held on in the end stranding the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position after Denfeld scored three times on three doubles and two hit by pitch in the top of the seventh Braydon Rewertz had a pair of hits for Hibbing throwing five innings and allowing just one run on three hits Bo Harriman was nearly unhittable for the Lumberjacks Niko Gentilini went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs in the victory while Aiden Reuvers and Jack Battaglia posted two hits apiece CLOQUET — Facing declining enrollment and the unexpected loss of federal and state funding the Cloquet School Board voted to slash the district’s budget by an estimated $1.9 million the board voted on a series of proposed budget cuts for the 2025-2026 school year The cuts include eliminating the equivalent of over 30 positions “This is something that we never want to have to do It's always extremely hard to do,” Superintendent Michael Cary told the board “We always know that the people that work for us are good people.” The board approved the elimination of positions ranging from teachers to social workers to custodians It is still being determined how many people will lose their jobs State law and union contracts require the board to move senior-tenured employees whose positions are eliminated to any position for which they are qualified and instead lay off probationary and more recently tenured employees Cary anticipates that between 25 and 30 employees will be laid off which was created by administrative officials and school principals called for $2 million in cuts to positions and services deemed least essential to the district’s mission of education worried that the cuts were too austere and voted to retain an industrial technology teaching position and the district’s technology director reducing the cuts to an estimated $1.9 million “I'm not concerned for us to get that $2 million if it comes on the $1.85 (million) or $1.9 (million),” board member Dave Battaglia said let's go out and look for another $100,000 the board held a separate vote on cutting an industrial technology teaching position Board members voted unanimously to keep the position this may be the only cut on here that would eliminate opportunities for kids The other ones might increase a class size one or two,” Battaglia said “This is the only one that actually eliminates a program.” Cutting the position would negate the district’s investment in establishing a manufacturing lab One of the most severe cuts is the reduction of five full-time social worker positions Many of their responsibilities will now be administered by the school’s principals fearing that cutting social workers could have a disproportionate impact on the district’s minority and Indigenous students “There are other services that are offered in the school they do require formal diagnoses,” Diver said “So my concern is about our students who are dependent solely on school-based services.” “I would like to see us getting to a point where we're not in this same situation every year simply because of how tough this all is on everybody,” Cary said Because the district can only make so many cuts to its education programs Cary said it will likely need to make some of its biggest reductions in administrative jobs Among the administrative positions proposed for reduction was the technology director position held by T.J The district would have instead contracted with an outside firm overwhelm staff and cripple our technology hurting students and teachers,” Smith told the board the resolution to terminate Smith’s position failed without a vote Some school board members expressed concern that by not making more cuts now the district could have to make further cuts again in a year “Are we comfortable with the ($1.9 million) knowing that we have contracts that we don't have settled yet?” Board Chair Nate Sandman asked the board noting that pending union contracts could increase the district’s deficit to over $2 million “This is going to further push our budget deficit and it's also going to make it a lot harder next year when it comes to eliminations and cuts.” “My guessing is that we're still going to see (layoffs) next year in regards to it because now we're just digging ourselves a hole,” he added CARLTON — A Cloquet woman was sentenced this week to more than five years in prison for her 11th impaired-driving-related conviction pleaded guilty last month to a felony first-degree charge and was sentenced Monday by Judge Rebekka Stumme to a guideline term of 65 months a Carlton County sheriff's deputy noticed a pickup lacking a rear license plate light had stopped for an unusually long time at the otherwise empty intersection of Carlton Avenue and 14th Street The deputy ran the license plate and learned the registered owner she could not produce a license or insurance had bloodshot and glossy eyes and her speech was slurred She was arrested after she admitted she had been drinking beer and smoking marijuana Smith reportedly became belligerent after she was taken to the Carlton County Law Enforcement Center including yelling profanities and racial slurs and asking the deputy to take off her handcuffs so she could "show" the deputy "what I'm made of." Authorities said she refused to take a breath alcohol test three additional counts were dismissed: felony refusal to submit to a DWI test misdemeanor driving without insurance and a petty misdemeanor for not having illuminated license plates Smith has 10 prior convictions related to impaired driving At least five of the last convictions were felonies 16 to misdemeanor domestic assault stemming from a June confrontation with a family member A woman reported she was injured when Smith slammed a door in her face when she would not let Smith drive while intoxicated Smith was sentenced in January to 60 days in jail in that case — a sentence that has already been fulfilled She will be required to spend a little more than 43 months in prison for the latest DWI before she will be eligible for supervised release wants to build a store on the south edge of the city The retail chain is proposing to construct a nearly 22,000-square-foot store on Minnesota Highway 33 The Cloquet Planning Commission took a first look at the proposal Tuesday The commission approved a variance and conditionally endorsed the site plan The plan next heads to the Cloquet City Council for a vote the council approved rezoning the site — the former Minnesota Department of Natural Resources property south of Cloquet Flooring The approximately 8-acre property was zoned Farm Residential and is now zoned Regional Commercial is the “largest rural lifestyle retailer in the U.S.,” according to its website The chain has 2,200 stores across 49 states The closest stores to Cloquet are in Virginia and Aitkin In addition to the 21,930-square-foot store the company is proposing a large fenced outdoor sales area That area will house a garden center and drive-in pickup area and will have propane and other items for sale The store also wants to display for-sale items out in front of the store The outdoor plans required a variance because city regulations typically restrict outdoor sales space to no more than 10% of the store size The site plan also includes 88 parking spaces — the minimum required by city code — that wrap around the front and north sides of the building Vehicles would get to the store via the existing Highway 33 frontage road which has access to the highway just to the north of the site Planning Commission members were unanimous in approval after just one question Commissioner Elizabeth Polling asked Tractor Supply Co representative Mike Zavilla about the anticipated timeline Zavilla said he expected the store would be open “within a year.” Once construction gets underway it typically takes about 28 weeks to complete A roofing business also is proposing to build off Highway 33 in Cloquet the Planning Commission unanimously approved the purchase of city land in the Cloquet Business Park and endorsed the site plan for Collins Roofing and Sheet Metal The company purchased two lots in the business park just to the east of where the DNR relocated Collins Roofing and Sheet Metal specializes in metal roofing systems for commercial buildings as well as houses and has offices in Hermantown and St A 6,400-square-foot office and warehouse building is proposed The site plan also includes a fenced equipment and materials storage area and a parking lot with the minimum required 25 spaces CLOQUET — Cloquet’s Allie Jones turned and watched as the pitch she had just thrown flew well beyond the fence in right field The senior ace had just missed her spot with a changeup and Moose Lake/Willow River’s Mackenzie Hoffmann made her pay with a two-run shot because she knew the game was far from over and that helped me push through,” Jones said and I settled down in the second inning and started having some fun.” After giving up a home run and a pair of singles Jones found her stuff and retired eight consecutive Rebels including three-straight in the third inning While Jones found her groove in the circle The Lumberjacks scored a pair in the bottom of the first before adding another in the second inning and two more in the third frame Allie included,” Cloquet head coach Tyler Korby said we gave up a zero the next inning and we just kind of settled in from there.” more inexperienced teams may have folded after giving up a couple of early runs against a Moose Lake/Willow River program that has ended each of its last three seasons at the state tournament in North Mankato and they ultimately secured an 8-4 victory over the Rebels an effort he believes is a testament to a senior-laden roster that has all the ingredients necessary to be special this season “We are as deep and strong defensively as we’ve been in a long time,” Korby said and they really want to take the next step We’re going to take it one ballgame at a time Nothing gives Cloquet (3-0) more confidence than its pitching and defensive consistency Whether it’s Rylie Goranson’s cannon at third base or Aili Huhta robbing home runs in right field which she did in the fifth inning against the Rebels Korby admitted that batting streaks may come and go but he has a defensively sound group and a pitcher in the circle who can control games and that gives him a lot of confidence in this team “Rylie has an absolute laser at third base and Aili Huhta made a play in right field that changed the game She’s comfortable with the kids behind her.” Jones gave up four runs on nine hits across seven innings while walking one and striking out 13 Moose Lake/Willow River head coach Kelly Goeb said having her Rebels see a quality pitcher like Jones is great preparation for what they will face in the playoffs “It’s big to see a pitcher who throws something other than fastballs,” Goeb said “That’s going to definitely make us better and more competitive as we get to the playoffs and further into the season because you’re going to see tough teams like that later on.” Knocking off a perennial power in Moose Lake/Willow River (5-2) that’s still a big deal to Jones and the Lumberjacks it boosts confidence and reaffirms that they’re capable of thriving this spring because now it feels like we can do anything,” Jones said “We’re trying to go to the state tournament We have a lot of upperclassmen and returners — a big group of seniors — and we all have faith in each other and want to win together.” Cloquet got offensive contributions from nearly every starter Monday evening as six Lumberjacks recorded at least one hit and an RBI Goranson went 2-for-3 and drove in a run while senior Josie Lindstrom led the charge with her 3-for-3 day at the plate Korby noted that there is a lot of season left but his team is playing well and they’re having a good time doing it which he said is what high school sports are all about but the girls are playing well and having fun CLOQUET — Over 50 volunteers gathered at the Dunlap Island Park Shelter before fanning out across the island and along the banks of the St Bolt Construction organizes the annual spring cleanup according to a city of Cloquet news release The city's Parks Department collects and properly disposes of the bags of collected trash CLOQUET — A couple and their young son are without a home and two of their pets are dead and two are missing after a fire destroyed the converted bus they were living in Thursday evening outside of Cloquet The cause of the fire wasn't immediately known The camper served as a temporary place to stay while the couple worked on building their off-grid home on the property Their dream is to create a hobby farm in the woods where their dogs can run free with their chickens May said he left the property Thursday around 4:30 p.m to pick up his son from day care and fiancee from work “Last night we drove down our driveway to see our tiny home completely engulfed in flames,” Boulanger wrote on the GoFundMe page “The fire department suspects it was an electrical fire there were three dogs and one cat in that home.” was found Friday morning a neighbor’s porch about a mile away Tova had severe burns and injuries from jumping out of a broken window and had to be euthanized A Doberman named Kaladin and a cat named Lux are still missing “The plan from here on out is to find Kaladin and we've got each other,” Boulanger said Friday The missing 1-year-old Doberman is May’s epilepsy alert dog in-training and so she's old and grumpy and ready to retire,” May said He's trained on seizure alert so he makes sure that I can drive safely and function and do my work.” A search and rescue team is meeting with the family Friday to help locate the missing animals They’ve also hired a heat-seeking drone/search dog team “Our community has been searching these woods since last night,” Boulanger said It's a matter of finding him and how injured he is and how cold it is.” nearly $13,000 of the fundraiser’s $30,000 goal had been raised but there was some pretty expensive equipment just to be off grid,” Boulanger said The couple owns Transfurmation Training & Grooming in Cloquet Transfurmation clients are aiding in search efforts and pulling together resources Their business will take a brief pause as the couple regains their footing clothing and memories were lost in the blaze They are staying with Boulanger’s mother in Duluth “We went to Walmart just to get pajamas and stuff to sleep in,” May said His (son's) stuffed animal since he was a baby was in there and I don't want him sitting there thinking that his freaking stuffed wolf died alone and burned up And we just stood there in Walmart crying over this stupid wolf.” CLOQUET — A report of a bomb threat and a person carrying a rifle that provoked the evacuation of two schools Thursday according to the Cloquet Police Department Carlton County Dispatch received a report of a bomb threat and an armed person at Cloquet High School Law enforcement searched the high school and the middle school and found no evidence to substantiate the report according to a news release from the police department High school and middle school students were evacuated to designated evacuation sites while law enforcement school staff informed families they could pick up their children at the evacuation sites or children could return to the schools The police department is collaborating with state agencies to investigate the report CPD believes this incident is a swatting hoax and that there was no real threat," the news release read CARLTON — A Cloquet man has admitted to slashing his girlfriend’s throat after accusing her of “snitching” on him Court documents say a tribal police officer saw Smith and his romantic partner walking down a reservation road on Aug the officer attempted to make contact with him but he fled on foot and could not be located officers were called to a stolen ATV report near Danielson Road and Jarvi Road they were alerted to a "physical domestic" in the area with the reporting party showing officers a photo of the woman's wound The criminal complaint says police then met the victim at a nearby residence finding a neck laceration so deep that it exposed her trachea The woman indicated she and Smith had been on an ATV trail when he started tightening a chin strap on her helmet to the point that it interfered with her breathing He then repeatedly asked why she was snitching on him — an apparent reference to the incident earlier in the day — before pulling out a knife and cutting her neck The woman told officers that she fought with Smith and was able to flee into the woods Police said they located her purse and a helmet on the ATV trail near Jack Pine Drive he reportedly had a cut on his hand and was in possession of a bandana with apparent blood on it Additional counts of second-degree assault and domestic assault are expected to be dismissed as a result of Smith pleading guilty to the most serious charge Judge Amy Lukasavitz ordered a standard background investigation ahead of sentencing May 22 Smith still faces misdemeanor prescription drug possession and trespassing charges in the case that prompted the arrest warrant antique stores should have something for everybody This was Leland’s mantra when she was curating her selection of antiques to sell at Cloquet Antique Marketplace a new antique store opening in Cloquet on Tuesday just an assortment of different items to kind of grab everybody's attention rather than just your typical antique store,” Leland said The antique store will sell an array of vintage items Leland aims to feature antiques from the ’60s “That kind of seems to be the vibe that everybody is buying right now,” Leland said The store will be Leland's second location a sprawling shop in West Duluth that sells antiques from 58 different dealers The format for the new shop will be smaller but similar including some longtime vendors from the Duluth location as well as some new vendors from the Cloquet area “It's a good place to go and just kind of relax and spend a couple hours That's what's nice about the Duluth (location) because it's a big one and I wanted that same experience at the Cloquet,” Leland said “That's why I tried to put a lot of stuff in there Leland is trying to orient her inventory to be more inviting for men She created an entire “man cave” section of the store featuring old beer signs “(It’s) usually hard to find stuff out in the wild right now to try to buy for men in antique stores,” she said Leland said she wanted to open a second location in Cloquet because it feels like a small tight-knit community with only select antique options and it just seemed like the perfect little spot,” Leland said there will be a raffle with $50 gift cards Regular business hours will be Wednesday to Saturday from 11 a.m CARLTON — A man is accused of sexually assaulting a sleeping child who was visiting his home Court documents allege Phillip Alexander Petite provided two boys with alcohol before one woke up to the assault The incident occurred in late December at the defendant’s home on the Fond du Lac Reservation in Cloquet Petite called police in the early morning Dec claiming he had been assaulted by a juvenile at his home had come over that night and he provided them with whiskey and beer the victim indicated Petite told them he was giving them “juice.” When the boy commented that the liquid burned and made him feel funny the defendant stated: “Maybe it was the old kind (of juice).” and the two boys fell asleep on a couch while Petite sat nearby he awoke to Petite engaging in a sex act on him The boy said he recognized what was occurring screamed and punched him in the face before leaving The child went to a park to “cool off,” returned to get the other boy and went to another home He stated Petite appeared “scared” at that point When officers responded to Petite’s 911 call he acknowledged that he “f---ed up” by providing alcohol to minors which registered a blood-alcohol content of 0.15 Officers also seized his phone after noticing “contemporaneous text messages” with the victim Police said the two boys also had an odor of alcohol and a test confirmed the victim had it in his system He was described as “crying and visibly upset.” The victim’s clothing was collected and sent to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension for analysis Testing on his pants and underwear later confirmed the presence of semen and a component of saliva with Petite identified as a possible contributor Petite is charged with first- and second-degree criminal sexual conduct and contributing to the delinquency of a child Judge Amy Lukasavitz set bail at $150,000 and ordered no contact with the victim Petite’s next court appearance was scheduled for March 10 CLOQUET — The Cloquet School District anticipates eliminating between 25 and 30 staff positions as part of upwards of $2 million in budget cuts After crafting a plan with the district’s principals and meeting with staff affected by the proposed cuts earlier this week Cary presented the proposal during a Friday Cloquet School Board committee-of-the-whole meeting The board will vote on the proposal during its regular meeting on Monday “We all have a natural tendency to want to save these things “I'm sick to my stomach for weeks when we're doing this.” we think we're trending closer to our worst-case scenario than we are best-case scenario,” Cary said Among the biggest reductions are five social worker positions the number of social workers grew from just one to over eight Many responsibilities would instead revert to the school principals The proposal drew the concern of board member Nichole Diver who is herself a social worker and feared that the elimination of the positions would have a disproportionate impact on minority and Indigenous students “Just wondering how these gaps are going to be planned to be filled,” Diver asked Cary said many positions being proposed to cut were added when the district had steady growth and a healthy budget student enrollment is now projected to decline “The reason we added programs is because at the time we had sufficient numbers of kids that looked like we would be able to sustain those and we were on a growing trend,” Cary said Board member LeAnn Butler worried that the proposal to cut an industrial technology position would result in fewer opportunities for students are we cutting opportunities for kids in the classroom and are kids going to have less opportunities for certain things?” Butler asked State law and union contracts require the school board to move senior-tenured employees to any position for which they are qualified and instead lay off probationary and more recently tenured employees the district plans to cut positions officials determined to be least essential and move more senior employees into positions held by less senior employees keeping our class section sizes within a range that we have that we don't go outside of The most important thing we do is teaching and learning,” Cary said Cary said the district will move teachers to any position that they are licensed to teach even if they don’t have a strong background in teaching those subjects “We are required to put people in the places that they're licensed to be in order to make sure we are protecting our most senior staff members and that's regardless of whether we believe that they're well equipped to do that particular job or not,” Cary said don't just stand there and ignore it,” he said The budget also calls for eliminating the position of technology director Smith and instead contracting technology services with a private company Cary said Smith’s position is likely the first of many future cuts to administrative director positions that we choose to eliminate a position where we have a family with kids that are paying taxes in our school system,” board member Gary Huard said but I just think that we have to take another look at this.” This story originally listed an incorrect student enrollment at Cloquet Public Schools CLOQUET — Cloquet Public Schools is preparing for another “reduction” in staffing to help balance a budget shortfall Cary did not provide any specifics at Monday's Cloquet School Board meeting but said "jobs are being proposed for reduction." District employees will meet with staff affected by the proposed reductions next week before the reductions are announced at a school board committee-of-the-whole meeting on Friday “It's just a courtesy so you don't hear about it through somebody who watched a meeting,” Cary said “We feel like we're pretty close,” Cary told the board “I think we're almost done with our budget recommendations and what we think we need to hit for a target.” The cuts are driven by declining student enrollment and uncertainty over federal and state funding Revenue loss from declining enrollment is exasperated by uncertainty over cuts to federal spending The district is also negotiating union contracts which Cary said could have a major impact on its overall budget “Even just a 1% increase across our contracts can mean hundreds of thousands of added dollars,” he said state law requires the school board to move tenured employees to any position for which they are qualified and instead lay off probationary staff The board will vote on the proposed budget cuts on Monday CLOQUET — A driver with 10 DWI-related convictions allegedly admitted to drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana but refused testing after she was pulled over Dec 23 in District Court with felony counts of DWI and refusal to submit to a DWI test plus misdemeanor driving without insurance and a petty misdemeanor for not having illuminated license plates a Carlton County sheriff's deputy noticed a pickup that stopped for a long time at the otherwise empty intersection of Carlton Avenue and 14th Street She was arrested after she allegedly admitted she had been drinking beer and smoking marijuana including yelling profanities and racial slurs and asking the deputy to take off her handcuffs so she could "show" the deputy "what I'm made of." She allegedly refused to take a breath alcohol test but Smith remained in the Carlton County Jail as of Monday Smith has 10 convictions related to driving while under the influence spanning from 1995-2021 16 to misdemeanor domestic assault in another case that followed a June confrontation with a family member according to the court complaint in that case Smith is scheduled to be sentenced in that case Jan CLOQUET — Calls for service have nearly doubled since the Cloquet Area Fire District first formed in 2009 The increased demand has required the district to hire more staff and keep more equipment in a headquarters designed to serve only the city of Cloquet The district now provides firefighting and emergency medical response services to the cities of Cloquet and Scanlon Perch Lake and Brevator townships and the Fond du Lac reservation as well as emergency medical response to Thomson Township and southern parts of St “This facility just wasn't designed or planned out to meet that type of a demand or call volume,” Buhs said Cloquet Area Fire District officials are seeking funding for a new facility The Cloquet Area Fire District will hold four town hall meetings about the proposal for a new facility The meetings will be at Cloquet Public Library at 6 p.m Two open houses will be held at the headquarters station A formal public hearing is scheduled for 6 p.m 12 at the Carlton County Government Services Building Board rooms where meetings are held currently have workout equipment and medical manikins scattered throughout Narrow margins separate fire trucks in the apparatus bay Closets have been retrofitted to wash fire gear Expanding the facility isn't feasible because the building is built into a hillside and we just cannot fix it by adding on or remodeling,” Buhs said The building also is rapidly deteriorating The heating and air conditioning is faulty the retaining wall is crumbling and the roof leaks The fire district has been hesitant to make expensive repairs because it has been evident since it was founded that they would eventually need a new building “It's just one thing after another," Buhs said “I don't want to communicate it like it's neglect We've been hesitant to spend the money here because we don't see a future here.” The district is seeking $10 million from the state to help fund a new facility The district has been planning to construct a new station for nearly a decade but has struggled to acquire outside funding because the fire district is one of a select few special taxing districts in the state which often excludes it from federal and state funding earmarked for municipalities “We just have such a limited pool of funds or really access to funding that this request … is just massive to our future,” Buhs said Jeff Dotseth introduced legislation seeking to appropriate $10 million but the Minnesota Legislature failed to pass a bonding bill He plans to again advocate for the Cloquet Area Fire District’s new building during this year’s session “Sometimes it takes a couple times around the mountain to actually get some of the stuff accomplished and I think some of these have been round one and then now we're looking at moving for round two to try to move the needle a little bit further,” Dotseth said the Carlton County Board of Commissioners unanimously voted to send a letter of support for the legislative funding Buhs said the district will also seek grants and other outside funding opportunities Because the Cloquet Area Fire District is a special taxing district it has the authority of a local government to set a levy If efforts to secure outside funding prove unsuccessful the district will have to consider securing funding through property taxes “If we're unsuccessful with the state bonding That's why we're very diligently working to try and secure outside funds,” he said  Blair had a great sense of humor and loved to joke around Being without his soul mate for the last 8 years left a hole in his heart that could not be filled Blair was a proud grandpa to 17 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren through our memories of him and the lessons he taught us Blair will be greatly missed by all those who knew and loved him March 7th from 2-4 pm at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Cloquet – Carlton County Sheriffs say that when responding to an alleged shooting the victim led them on a chase that reached speeds over 100 mph and involved deputies attempting to stop the vehicle with spike strips Carlton County 911 dispatch received a report that a man had been shot in the leg at 3667 W on the Fond du Lac Reservation in Carlton County The caller told dispatch the victim was insisting on driving himself to the hospital and “did not want to go by ambulance.” The victim then drove off in his truck according to the caller who followed in a separate vehicle while still on the phone with dispatch An officer with the Fond du Lac Tribal Police Department spotted the victim’s truck driving on Hwy 210 near the Sawyer Store and “attempted to stop the vehicle with his emergency lights and sirens to aid” the victim The victim started to drive erratically “and fled from law enforcement.” Officer statements alleged the victim’s “speed exceeded 100 MPH and he swerved and brake-checked responding law enforcement patrol cars in an aggressive manner.” Carlton County Sheriffs Deputies reported they deployed spike strips but that the victim’s truck “fled to Cloquet Memorial Hospital and (the victim) ran inside.” When authorities spoke with the victim inside the hospital he claimed his brother was the person who shot him According to the victim’s initial statements his brother came to his property before shooting him four times three striking a bulletproof vest and the other hitting “his side oblique resulting in the injury.” The victim claimed he then shot back a feud between the victim and his brother allegedly stemmed back to 2012 but most recently involved a dispute over their late father’s property Due to his brother recently threatening his life the victim said he began wearing a bulletproof vest a few days prior to the shooting the victim said he first noticed his dog barking at something on the property and went to investigate He said he then saw his brother roughly twenty feet away near some trees with “crazy eyes” and “was pointing a silver semi-automatic handgun at him and fired four rounds.” When the victim fell to the ground he said he fired into the air to scare his brother off bite his brother before he fled in a truck described as a “Nisan Titan.”  According to the victim’s statements “he waited approximately 30 to 45 minutes before calling 911 and during that time had locked his handgun in a gun cabinet.” Once the victim was discharged from the hospital the affidavit claimed he went “to his home where he continues to be uncooperative.”  authorities contacted the victim’s brother who agreed to meet them at his residence When asked if he knew anyone with a truck similar to what the victim saw he “could not give a clear or definitive answer.” Deputies did not locate any weapons on his person and a search warrant executed at his residence did report finding firearms The brother agreed to give a statement at the sheriff’s office the brother denied “knowledge or involvement” in the shooting and that he hasn’t seen the victim in over a year He further stated that he doesn’t own firearms and was at home all night Carlton County Sheriff’s Office says this is an ongoing investigation Superior softball flipped a switch on Friday taking down Cloquet 7-3 for the Lumberjacks first loss of the season Johnson was instrumental in the Spartans win Johnson delivered a big blow in the 4th inning when her double off the center field fence drove in two Spartan runs Superior moves to 5-3 and will turn to take on Duluth Marshall on Thursday Cloquet will try to build another win streak on Saturday against Bemidji at 12 p.m Any person with disabilities who needs help accessing the content of the FCC Public file should contact Vicki Kaping at vkaping@wdio.com or (218) 727-6864 CLOQUET — Several years ago Nate Knutson had the novel idea of bringing Hockey Day Minnesota — an annual statewide event featuring high school college and professional hockey matchups — to Cloquet after realizing it could take nearly a decade for organizers to bring the event to Cloquet Knutson decided he would create one himself “Outside hockey and rink rat hockey is kind of the legacy of Minnesota and we wanted to kind of bring back that,” said Knutson a former hockey coach who has coached hockey teams across northern Minnesota After deciding to bring the event to Cloquet along with a team of roughly 20 volunteers sought local sponsorships and coordinated with the city of Cloquet to make the event a reality there has been an outpouring of support from the community and area businesses He estimates that the event has around 30 sponsors which Knutson said is noteworthy in a town the size of Cloquet and understand the amount of work it takes to get something like this and they're very eager to get behind it,” he said Organizers partnered with local construction companies to build the rink and temporary team locker rooms Players will wear custom throwback jerseys made by K1 Sportswear Blacklist Brewing in Duluth even made a special Hockey Day Cloquet beer — although Knutson noted that alcohol won’t be available at the event Knutson estimates in total the event ended up costing roughly $250,000 in material and labor Hockey Day Cloquet will open with a match between the Lake Superior Warriors and Iron Range Warriors members of a hockey association consisting of military veterans with the varsity and JV girls’ team playing the Northern Tier Stars and varsity and JV boys’ teams playing the Sartell Sabres the rink will be used by local youth programs Playing a sanctioned hockey game outside was a longtime dream that is about to become a reality for Grady Knutson Nate’s son and captain of the Lumberjacks’ boys varsity team "It's cool watching as a kid watching Hockey Day Minnesota and watching all the outdoor games just playing on the outdoor rink,” Grady said So it's really cool to get to play in one myself.” organizers will start slowly decommissioning the rink and locker rooms The ice will remain and can be used by the public for free Though there are no plans for Hockey Day Cloquet to become an annual event Knutson hopes it will inspire people to organize similar events in the future “When you sit down at Veterans Park and look at that rink you can visualize that day and hopefully all the fun memories that are going to come of it,” Knutson said no roads connected the Minnesota North Shore Postal Service to communicate with the outside world could have their mail delivered via boat during the warmer months But once Lake Superior froze there was only one way to deliver mail: dog sled The man most remembered for delivering mail to these remote communities with his team of sled dogs was John Beargrease Cloquet postmaster McKinzie Korpela will carry on the tradition Korpela will swear in mushers as legal Postal Service mail carriers before they compete in the John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon “We sometimes forget about how important the mail is and or was,” Korpela said “So it's really neat that we can carry such a neat and long lasting tradition for these mushers and everybody.” The swearing-in will happen during opening ceremonies at the Buffalo House outside Duluth on Saturday where Korpela will lead mushers in the oath of office Mushers will then be legally able to carry commemorative “trail mail” being mailed specifically for the sled dog race The commemorative envelope will be signed by a musher and receive a stamped cancellation which reads “carried by dog sled.” The mail will then be picked up by Mike Keyport the race’s president and great-grandson of Beargrease Postal Service where it will enter the regular mail stream “We're putting the trust in the mushers to get that trail mail from point A to point B,” Korpela said Keyport said the Cloquet postmaster has a long history of leading the swearing-in ceremony for John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon which was founded in 1980 and is the longest sled dog race in the United States outside of Alaska the swearing in was led by former Cloquet postmaster Todd Manisto Manisto retired from the Postal Service in April Korpela became the Cloquet postmaster in May and agreed to keep the tradition of a Cloquet postmaster leading the ceremony alive Korpela recalls learning about the adventures of Beargrease when she was a student at Carlton High School how the process of mail works and how it transformed,” she said “Like they didn't have mail there for how long you got to get mail up there’ and this crazy man with a dog sled was like ‘I'll do it.’” Though the Postal Service can sometimes be taken for granted Korpela is grateful that the legacy of Beargrease and his efforts to deliver mail are still remembered “It's a cool tradition to keep going,” she said “It keeps postal history at the forefront.” CLOQUET — Cloquet High School’s production of “Mamma Mia!” is this weekend the musical tells the story of a young woman's search for her birth father in the Greek isles through the music of ABBA Cloquet Middle and High Schools were given the all-clear on Thursday after an alleged swatting attempt according to a report from the Cloquet Police Department Carlton County Dispatch received the report of a bomb threat and a person carrying a rifle at Cloquet High School Students were evacuated while authorities got to work and other local law enforcement responded and found no evidence the Duluth Police Department brought in a bomb detection canine to sweep the premises The Cloquet Police Department believes this was a swatting hoax and there was no real threat Their collaborating with state agencies to gather more information textile-brand Pendleton has cornered the market on Indigenous-inspired blankets with geometric patterns popularized by Southwestern peoples like the Navajo an Ojibwe lifestyle brand on the Fond du Lac Reservation with a storefront in Cloquet these blankets are not in any way representative of floral artwork of the Ojibwe In contrast to the geometric designs popularized by Pendleton Howes said Ojibwe designs employ swirly lines to represent plants “There's stories and there's origins to that that get lost when there's no artists or no community connected to the design and that's the missing part when you don't work with actual artists,” Howes said A major focus of Ojibwe art is functionality and how to make everyday items beautiful or tell a story a member of the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Howes employs that framework to make Ojibwe art on a multitude of mediums “I love to make things that people live with that’s like part of their life because that's kind of how our art has always worked,” she said which Howes said historically served as a form of currency for the Ojibwe and are commonly given as a gift at major life events such as weddings or the birth of a child After partnering in 2014 with Eighth Generation an art and lifestyle brand owned by the Snoqualmie Tribe in Washington state Howes designed Heart Berry’s signature Renewal Wool Blanket She says the black and red tapestry conveys the interrelationships between the plants and animals that have historically sustained the Ojibwe strawberries are called “Ode'imin,” which translates to "heart berry." The blanket helps to visualize the Ojibwe value system Howes described wild rice as a gift that if harvested not only makes you feel better because you are active but gives reason to care about the water it grows in “There's this reminder that people put into our art like these are these things that are these gifts that are there for you “These are all these amazing things that are there so we wouldn't forget.” she never really saw herself as much of an artist until she began participating in powwows When Howes started making beadwork and making moccasins she noted that though there was a strong demand for cultural art After receiving $800 in 2009 from Cobell v a class-action lawsuit over the mismanagement of Indigenous trust funds Howes decided to use the money to start what would become Heart Berry and so what would I want to do with this that would have meaning?” she said Heart Berry started on Howes’ kitchen table over a decade ago she decided it was time to open a storefront in downtown Cloquet “But I try to really wing it at a very measured Most of Heart Berry’s work is sold online and through Eighth Generation Though most of her work sells in the Midwest Howes has taken orders from as far as Finland While downtown Cloquet lacks foot traffic to sustain Heart Berry as a full-time retail shop Howes also uses her storefront as a platform to teach classes as a means of cultural revitalization reconnecting people with cultural art Howes hopes to expand wholesale operations as a means of institutionalizing Ojibwe art on a larger scale She also hopes to start contracting with architecture firms to create massive Ojibwe art installations on the sides of buildings as a monument to her people our community sees it and knows that we're beautiful and powerful,” she said “But also other communities see that are like Free class on how to make Hmong-style egg rolls and two blackout games for $2 or three for $5 Raffle benefiting Spring Fever Days and concessions from Barnum students also available $5 children over 5 and free for younger children Proceeds go to the family of Darrin Carlson Free weekly meal provided by Community of Hope 2:16 Esko; 11:30-noon at Silver Brook Town Hall Learn about fostering and other volunteer opportunities RSVP to carltoncountyanimalrescue@gmail.com Crafts and other activities for children up to age 4 Certified technicians will ensure your child’s car seat is installed and used correctly Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College gymnasium Learn about career opportunities in the criminal justice field and meet representatives of law enforcement agencies fundraiser for the Cloquet track and field team sponsored by Cloquet Community Education and Recreation Cromwell Area Community Club hosts hunt; children will be divided by age groups Senior LinkAge Line presents essential info about Medicare RSVP to drose@carlton.k12.mn.us or 218-384-4225 ext Speaker is Carlton County Attorney Lauri Ketola Meal is Coney dog or hot dog with potato salad and other sides Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College Commons Students share about their semester projects Author of the children’s book “Rocky’s Lighthouse Adventure: A Lake Superior Tale” gives a reading and answers questions Socialize and share ideas with other knitters Bring your own project or some supplies available Esko Historical Society meets on the third Thursdays at 4 p.m Members of the public are invited to attend CLOQUET — The Cloquet Area Fire District is moving forward with plans for a new fire station “(We’re) approaching this pretty critical juncture and making a decision on moving forward to the station,” Fire Chief Jesse Buhs said Following a vote by the Cloquet Area Fire District Board last week approving preliminary bonding up to $18.88 million the fire district can now move forward with the architectural design and construction of a new facility to serve as its new headquarters Construction could begin as early as August “It is an indication that the board supports the new facility and not only sees the need but they see the urgency of getting it into the next phases,” Buhs said The district provides firefighting and emergency medical response services to the cities of Cloquet and Scanlon Perch Lake and Brevator townships and the Fond du Lac Reservation as well as emergency medical response to Thomson Township and southern parts of St it is still headquartered in the same building as it was when it served only Cloquet The district is seeking $10 million from the state Legislature and federal grants to help offset the cost of building The remaining amount needed to make annual bond payments would be generated through a tax levy on properties within the district or we've been kind of limited in the programs that we can apply to,” Buhs said The fire chief cautioned that the decision to pursue bonding is not definite and that there are still additional steps before the new building is finalized Because of the structure of the special taxing district that funds the district residents have until March 14 to petition for a referendum If a number equal to 5% of voters living within the district who voted in the last election sign the petition the proposed facility will be decided in a special election District officials have been planning a new building since 2018 But plans have been repeatedly delayed due to a lack of funding The fire district is one of a select few special taxing districts in the state Since the district first sought to build a new facility Buhs estimates that the building cost has increased by $7 million due to inflation it could delay construction until 2026 and drive up the inflationary cost by another $500,000 according to the resolution passed by the board “Part of the motivation in moving this forward is to try and eliminate any further inflationary impacts to the cost of the project,” Buhs said Buhs said the district will continue seeking outside funding but now plans for the proposed facility will still move forward even without funding support “We have to address this facility issue now,” he said CLOQUET — Business owners and advocates are pushing back on a proposed zoning ordinance limiting where cannabis dispensaries are allowed to operate The Cloquet City Council reviewed a proposed ordinance Tuesday that would largely limit cannabis dispensaries to operating in downtown the commercial district along state Highway 33 and the north side of town “The suggestion that staff and the Planning Commission have come up with is to try to separate the sale of the full-scale cannabis retail business to keep that out of residential neighborhoods and put it into our more densely commercially zoned districts,” City Administrator Tim Peterson said divides cannabis businesses into three categories: The ordinance would limit cannabis retail businesses to largely commercial districts and non-retail cannabis businesses to industrial areas The proposed ordinance follows the legalization of cannabis in Minnesota in 2023 The Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management which is responsible for licensing uses related to cannabis requires businesses to receive a local government’s certification of zoning compliance after being vetted a Cloquet-based cannabis facility on the north side of town just had its application reviewed by the Office of Cannabis Management and is now entered into the licensing lottery the proposed ordinance would prohibit the business from operating in its current location but that's only half the win,” Lau told the council “No one wants to just win half the lottery There was also frustration about business inhibited from operating in Cloquet’s historic West End business district which has struggled in recent years to attract business owners The proposed ordinance would not allow retail stores to operate there because of the neighborhood’s proximity to residential housing bring something in new to attract more business in five years So I just asked if you could amend it or add that to the zone Councilor Lara Wilkinson said that while she is sympathetic to separating cannabis businesses from residential areas she believes having cannabis businesses operating in the West End is preferable to empty storefronts “If you're going to have a responsible business owner with a good operational history with your business of this type I would rather encourage responsible business ownership in commercial areas.” Councilor Iris Keller said there could be a perceived hypocrisy of only subjecting cannabis businesses to certain zoning laws “If somebody were to come to town and they would see a day care in the liquor store right next to each other but you can't have the cannabis here,” she said At the recommendation of the city attorney City Planner John Kelley said his department removed lower-potency hemp products from the retail definition which will allow them to be sold by a variety of non-cannabis businesses Kelly said the Cloquet Planning Commission considered distances from schools day care facilities and select park facilities it further constrains where cannabis facilities could operate Peterson said the distance from those facilities will be covered by a separate future ordinance that will regulate cannabis similar to a liquor license Queen of Peace Catholic Church,102 Fourth St. gift-wrapping available for a donation to Carlton County Animal Rescue breakfast and lunch available from Boy Scouts Proceeds benefit Churchill Partners in Education Overflow parking and shuttle available in the Community Memorial Hospital Raiter Family Clinic lot To-go barbecue lunch also available from 10 a.m Community Memorial Hospital Raiter Clinic lobby hats and gloves available to anyone in need $15 donation to Cloquet Rotary’s Project Elf Griffith will speak about his latest nonfiction book “Gunflint Falling: Blowdown in the Boundary Water,” and his latest Sam Rivers Mystery set on Lake Vermilion “Dead Catch.” He’ll give away a book in a contest and have books for sale American Legion and Auxiliary is holding a silent auction and bake sale and serving coney dogs Cookie decorating and magic shows at 1:30 and 3 p.m Carlton County Historical Society Christmas make holiday crafts and sing along to carols played on the newly acquired 1910 Hamilton upright grand piano Santa’s Home for the Holidays parade and fireworks down Cloquet Avenue from 18th Street to Eighth Street in Cloquet Fireworks following the parade over downtown and Veterans Park Starts at the Depot Event Center and goes down Main Street Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for students at agateencores.org Children invited to bring a stuffed animal for a bedtime story leave the stuffed animal for a sleepover and pick it up after 1 p.m Get one-on-one assistance using your digital devices the library’s Libby app and other computer and online programs RSVP required; stop by the checkout desk or call 218-87901531 drawings and meet and receive a gift from Santa Tickets are $30 at www.blackbearcasinoresort.com/ottercreek.html Watch the movie “Frozen” and get a reading log to track your reading and earn prizes bingo fundraiser for Liberty K9 Rescue Ranch and dogs available for adoption Bring your own project to work on or some supplies available first come Children in kindergarten through sixth grade invited to make Arctic animals out of popsicle sticks crafts and ice skating rink (weather permitting) Dinner available for $10 and treats also available Jay Cooke State Park will be partially closed Dec River Inn area and the Munger Trail will remain accessible to visitors Other hiking trails will be closed and visitors should not access any areas south of the swinging bridge Visitors should wear brightly colored clothing The annual hunt aims to prevent deer overpopulation rope lights and electrical cords are accepted for free recycling 1952 – Passed away unexpectedly at home on March 14 After suffering a 66-49 loss at Duluth East on Feb a game in which Cloquet turned it over approximately two dozen times head coach Heather Young was at a loss for words regarding what she considers a lack of development from her Lumberjacks but we are not where we should be at this point,” Young said Cloquet has been plagued by turnovers since it opened the season in the third week of November against Proctor The Lumberjacks defense has been stifling at times but games — losses particularly — have too often come down to an exorbitant amount of turnovers and mental miscues but we turn over the ball too often and we don’t finish,” Young said you have to finish those and we struggle with them.” The turnovers and inability to finish high-quality scoring chances has been the driving force behind Cloquet’s inconsistency throughout the season Losing to Duluth East on Tuesday evening dropped Young’s Lumberjacks to 8-15 overall Cloquet has yet to win three straight games and twice has lost three or more contests consecutively “I’ve done this for a long time and I don’t have a lot of answers,” Young said “I knew we weren’t going to be world-beaters Young said practices throughout the season have been encouraging as her players understand schematically what needs to be done while simultaneously recognizing what other teams are doing and how it can be exploited As much as Cloquet has struggled this year both as a finisher at the rim and as an old-school passing point guard who sets her teammates up for success Hughes finished with a game-high 16 points while tallying several assists Hughes threw a delectable step-through pass into the paint that junior forward Nattie Butler finished for a layup “(Nattie) and I have been a dynamic duo since we were young,” Hughes said I feel like she understands the game to the point where I understand it We’ve been playing together since elementary school.” Butler finished with 12 points and was Cloquet’s second-leading scorer She and Hughes have been dominant at times this year but that doesn’t mean they’ve been immune to the frustrations of a season that hasn’t gone their way “It’s definitely been frustrating and hard,” Hughes said “We were given all the right tools to be successful in games and work with our team and make our team succeed Young indicated that as a veteran head coach she’s always self-evaluating and is consistently curious about how she can better serve her players and be a more effective leader of the program The struggles this season have amplified her self-analysis and at times she has questioned whether the program needs to be hearing a message from somebody other than her and it’s on you at the end of the day,” Young said maybe it’s what I’m running and what I think should be happening.’” Young has prided herself on always having a competitive program in an admittedly down Section 7AAA bracket will likely get a home playoff game to start the postseason this has been a grueling season for Cloquet and it’s left Young questioning whether she will return to the sidelines next season she will remain Cloquet’s biggest girls basketball supporter “I don’t know,” Young said regarding returning next year I don’t know… I think (as you get older) you get wiser and a lot more humble and realize you’re not the Holy Grail.” saying the girls in Cloquet’s program will always be her top priority “I don’t want to short these girls,” Young said ‘Maybe it’s me and maybe I’m just not enough because I’ll forever be their cheerleader and root for them.” “I think in fairness we interview them all because we're going to have our new board members voting on it,” said board member Dave Battaglia suggesting that the board interview all applicants including those who are already known to current board members so the newly elected board members can get to know them There are two options for filling a school board vacancy in Minnesota: appoint someone to the seat for the remainder of its term or hold a special election The earliest a special election could be held would be in April a replacement could be seated as soon as February at a nominal cost More information about the candidates follows: Sandman has served eight years on the board and had decided to retire He said he changed his mind after Buhs was elected to the county board “I have enjoyed my time on the school board and I felt that putting an opportunity or option for the school board to consider the appointment and have some options in regards to how they select the next candidate,” Sandman told the Pine Journal Sandman is an associate director for Fond du Lac Human Services Division where he works in health care administration and public health He is also a boys basketball coach for Cloquet Public Schools he has served on the Community Memorial Hospital board Louis County Public Health and Human Services Advisory Committee he believes he has been able to stay connected with the community and district and understands governance McKeon stated on his application that he wants to serve on the school board to be a voice for the people outside the school district He said he believes in common sense and seeks the best future for students at Cloquet Public Schools and the broader community McKeon wrote that he has served on several boards over the years which he said have given him the opportunity to grow as a person and leader personally and professionally Robert Peacock dropped out of Cloquet Public Schools his senior year He went on to earn his GED diploma and earn an associate degree He believes he would bring a unique perspective to the board an enrolled member of the Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe works at Head of the Lakes United Way in Duluth alongside local nonprofits and organizes school supply drives he previously served on the Fond du Lac Ojibwe School Board He is also a part of the Make-A-Wish Foundation serves on the local board of the American Federation of State He has been part of multiple chambers of commerce across northern Minnesota and Wisconsin As a father of two children attending Cloquet Public Schools Loons aims to serve on the school board to focus on education and the needs of students Loons previously served as a representative on the Urban Indian Advisory Board for the Minnesota Indian Affairs Council a council administered by the state aimed at protecting the sovereignty of Minnesota’s tribal nations He was involved with Destination Imagination a nonprofit focusing on helping youth manifest creativity He also coached at Queen of Peace Catholic School in Cloquet Loons believes he would bring a unique perspective on the interest of local families Williams worked in the district's Indian Ed program as a high school tutor He also worked at after school programs at Washington Elementary and at science and engineering camps through Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College Williams has worked with the University of Minnesota and Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa to advance students into transportation and STEM-related careers He previously served on the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities board of trustees which oversees the Minnesota state college system All three of Lammi’s children attended Cloquet Public Schools and received what he believes is a quality education Lammi was first appointed to the board in 2013 to fill another vacancy and served until 2022 where he covers the Carlton and Esko school boards he believes he brings an understanding of the troubles affecting area school districts Lammi is the past president of the Cloquet Youth Soccer Association and serves on the board of directors of the Carlton County Historical Society Lammi said he has learned how to work as a team toward a common objective 11 to provide additional context to a quote by Dave Battaglia Food will be served at both the visitation and memorial service CLOQUET — After working as a principal in Minnesota’s eighth-largest school district Jenny Holm wanted to work in a smaller and more community-focused district As the new principal of Churchill Elementary School and now that I'm a little bit more seasoned and so I wanted to be in a smaller community.” Following Superintendent Michael Cary’s recommendation the Cloquet School Board voted unanimously to hire Jenny Holm on Monday very highly recommended and did an absolutely excellent job in the interview pool,” Cary told the board The district interviewed five people from approximately 15 applicants He said interviewers shared a nearly unanimous impression that Holm’s professional experience would directly benefit the district’s needs “She had the strongest background and experience on top of (the interviewers) getting a really quality interview,” Cary said Cloud Area School District for 11 years and has served as the principal of Discovery Community School She has worked in education for over 25 years including small towns and mid-sized and urban cities reading specialist and instructional coach “I've kind of been around and taught in many different communities,” Holm said Holm graduated from the University of Wisconsin–River Falls and later earned her master’s degree and principal's license from St Her decision to work in Cloquet coincided with her children moving out of the house including a son attending college in Duluth she and her husband decided it was time for a move Holm also cited the Cloquet School District’s reputation for being a supportive district “It'll be nice just to have a little bit more of a smaller community and be able to feel more like a school family and just be able to make some decisions collaboratively and get to know each other better,” she said she said her top priority is ensuring students “My main goal when I come there is that every single student and staff and the families that are involved are going to feel safe and welcome at Churchill,” she said “They're going to feel that sense of belonging.” the Cloquet Police Department hopes to bring a dog back to the department Cloquet Police Chief Derek Randall made his case before the Cloquet City Council on Tuesday It allows us to do essentially more with less,” Randall said would bring a versatile skill set to the department and could be a cost-effective resource to compensate for the lack of officers Randall estimates a fully trained dog and associated costs would cost $22,500 A $7,500 grant from the American Kennel Club would be used so adding a dog would cost the city $12,000 he added that an undisclosed donor indicated they may be willing to cover the entire cost of a K-9 unit Randall hopes to get a dog through McDonough K-9 He said the company obtains its police dogs through a reputable trainer in the Czech Republic and guarantees bloodlines and a dog's health As for dogs that would fit the police department’s needs Randall said the trainer offers Dutch shepherds Randall said McDonough K-9 trains dogs if the city obtains a dog from somewhere else he is skeptical about that option because it may not guarantee the dog’s genetic health going to find out that it has issues with its hips or something like that,” Randall said Councilor Sheila Lamb suggested the department consider getting a dog from a breed-specific rescue She said that going to a reputable breeder does not always guarantee health She said she could provide information on adopting German shepherds and Belgian Malinois from a rescue “It saves taxpayers money — a substantial amount of money," Lamb said it saves a life and reduces dogs without a home which I think would speak highly of this city." Randall said he intends to have the dog trained as a dual-purpose dog he said that name is a bit of a misnomer because it would be trained in drug detection The department has had three K-9s used to detect drugs Randall said the department’s former K-9 units developed a national reputation among drug smugglers whom he said would actively avoid Interstate 35 “Traffickers were going around our community to avoid being detected,” he said with the fentanyl and the methamphetamine coming back into our community … having a K-9 that can detect these drugs is exactly what our community needs.” Randall said he believes that having a dog also will promote positive community engagement and offer a way to improve interaction between police and citizens The department has already posted for a K-9 handler position and received an applicant who meets the criteria The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to appoint Swanson to Carlson’s seat representing Ward 1 which includes a large southeastern section of the city Swanson will be sworn in during the council’s March 18 meeting I think that that would be an excellent fit for the community as well as the council,” City Administrator Tim Peterson said the council voted to seek applications from the public and appoint someone to the seat for the remainder of Carlson’s term and I do think that kids need to be able to see government working and working well,” Swanson said and I would like to continue with that in Cloquet.” Swanson also serves on the Cloquet Library Foundation Board the Cloquet Police Department’s Citizen Advisory Board the Pastoral Advisory Board at Good Hope Church and the Cloquet Community Scholarship Board Mayor Roger Maki applauded Swanson’s return to the council noting that he had always been impressed with Swanson’s preparation and conduct as a councilor “Keeping up on the basics of government — of local government — is really critical,” he said “And how do you do that with dwindling budgets or dwindling tax base?” Swanson agreed to serve as Cloquet’s representative on the Cloquet Area Fire District’s board of directors The decision to appoint Swanson to the council follows Peterson’s recommendation Peterson estimated that holding a special election could take several months and cost roughly $10,000 Swanson was first elected to the council in 2019 in a special election against two other candidates fewer than than 100 constituents cast a ballot in that special election died unexpectedly from a genetic heart condition Jan “I'm glad to do that to fill out the balance of this term,” Swanson said Minn.– The 25,000 square foot building was once used to house workers who rebuilt the city of Cloquet after the tragic fire of 1918 renovating the hotel is a challenge other groups passed on Hotel Solem is bringing a list of hurdles developer C&C Holdings is beginning to tackle “The challenge is always trying to take something that has predetermined space and a wall and reuse that and actually make it something that can be cost effective,” said Chad Scott Construction workers are gutting all three floors as well as bolstering and stabilizing the building The roof has been replaced to keep water intrusion at bay Asbestos and lead concerns are also being handled “Obviously as you can see behind me has repaired the east wall face Which is one of the critical reasons why the city of Cloquet condemned the building and came into ownership Because that wall was not stable,” explained Holly Hansen Cloquet’s Community Development Director The project was approved by the Cloquet City Council last spring The city was awarded $87,000 from a state grant to remove the containments inside the hotel Holly Hansen is thankful someone finally took on this project “We were very pleased to find C&C Holdings of Cloquet AMI Engineering and Nordic Group to help further that goal The Solem Hotel obviously the city was not interested in having that torn down It’s more important to save buildings and reuse them,” said Hansen The estimated cost of the renovation is nearly 4 million dollars The apartments will range from studios to 2-bedroom units And a new elevator and sprinkler system will be installed “We’ve gone through the majority of the demo which is where you open up a lot of the problems and issues Because we’ve gotten through most of that of that we feel that most of those hurdles were over right now moving forward there shouldn’t be any huge surprises for us,” said Scott Hansen said the Solem Apartments will play a role in the need for more downtown Cloquet housing it’s also playing a vital role with saving a building with unforgettable history “I think the people of Cloquet are shocked that we have found someone who can repair the building And there’s a lot of discussion all over Carlton County I would say of people driving past and really just surprised that this project is underway,” said Hansen I remember being here as a child in Cloquet I remember the area so being a part to bring something back helping the local community is a big part of why we’re doing this as well,” explained Scott Chad Scott one of the main developers said some apartments will be ready by August And they’re hoping everything will be done in October CLOQUET — As a young team looking to rebuild from last year's Section 7AAA runner-up finish the Cloquet girls basketball team has battled through bouts of inconsistency throughout the season Thursday’s matchup against Superior was no exception The Lumberjacks showed their youth and inexperience during key stretches of the contest leading to a 53-45 loss to the Spartans on their home court Cloquet head coach Heather Young did not mince words in frustration with the effort level of players on her team it was a situation where we had girls in foul trouble and that just put us really at a disadvantage I’ll take a loss if I have to prove to you that we need you to do your job,” she said With only one starter back from last year’s squad Young emphasized the importance of every player pulling their weight if they’re to be successful moving forward “If I can get five girls on the floor to all buy in at the same time … If we can get that they're gonna be successful and that has happened inconsistently all season long,” said Young “We’re just not talented enough to not have five girls on the floor doing their job have had their own share of ups and downs over the course of their 2024-2025 campaign according to head coach Mackenzie Meneguzzo “It’s a huge confidence booster,” she said “We battled the whole game (and) being down early I think this just helps our confidence build and to play aggressive The Spartans were forced to battle through adversity in the early goings of the first half after an 8-0 Cloquet run two and a half minutes into the contest led Meneguzzo to call a timeout to regroup Senior guard Tara Stratton ultimately pulled Superior out of the brief lull with nine of the team’s first 11 points in an 11-11 tie and I think that’s what kept us in the game early on and she kept hitting those big shots down the road..That’s confidence in our senior shooter right there.” After exchanging leads down the stretch of the first half the Lumberjacks pulled ahead for the last time with consecutive coast-to-coast baskets by Lauren Hughes and Rylie Goranson to put Cloquet up 28-24 at the break The momentum began to shift minutes into the second half when Hughes picked up consecutive offensive fouls including her fourth less than five minutes into the final frame The Spartans capitalized over the next seven minutes without the veteran guard on the floor building a 40-35 lead with just over five minutes left in the game Young took umbrage with the first charging foul and believed her agitation with the ref may have affected her team's chances down the stretch Despite the best efforts of leading scorer Paige Goranson the Lumberjacks were unable to battle back in the closing minutes as Ava Meierotto all but took over for the Spartans in the waning minutes with multiple key baskets to secure the victory Both teams will be back in action on Monday 20 with the Spartans (5-10) hosting New Richmond at 7:15 p.m. Crews have been busy building a temporary rink at Veterans Park The first game to kick things off will be between the Lake Superior Warriors and the Iron Range Warriors The other games featuring the high school teams on Saturday will require tickets But proceeds benefit the Cloquet hockey team For more information: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61564678781640 CLOQUET — Cody Crisel learned much of what he knows about woodworking from his grandfather would take Crisel along to contracting jobs when Crisel was 6 years old Crisel is employing the skills his grandfather taught him as the owner of his own woodworking studio Labrador Woodworking — named after his dog — opened in Cloquet in January “I try to make it as custom and special as possible for the person's home,” Crisel said The woodworker prides himself on the unique details of each piece of furniture he makes such as intricate trim work or drawing attention to the grain of wood Despite advances in technology designed to make furniture manufactured cheap for mass production Crisel still prefers to make his customized hardwood furniture the way his grandfather taught him — with real wood “It's hard to find nowadays real hardwood furniture,” Crisel said Crisel is an enthusiast of using solid hardwoods He gets his wood locally milled at the Lester River Sawmill outside of Duluth Cheaper woods such as plywood are used only structurally and are never visible in his work By making his furniture with real hardwood Crisel believes he is making furniture that is both timeless and durable which is becoming harder to find as corporate-made furniture is increasingly made out of manufactured wood and veneer and someone spilling on it can warp that spot out and you'll never get it looking good,” he said if something happens to solid-wood furniture it only needs to be sanded and re-stained and it will look like it is brand new Crisel worked for his grandfather’s carpentry business he left Crisel his woodworking studio and equipment Crisel said the response to his work has been enthusiastic People interested in contracting with Labrador Woodworking are encouraged to call or email to schedule an appointment Crisel will then schedule a series in-person walk-throughs and video calls to get a feel for the demands of the project Crisel can be contacted at 218-600-9658 or labadorwoodworkingllc@gmail.com His woodworking studio is located on the corner of Doddridge Avenue and 18th Street CLOQUET — Cloquet didn’t need to look far to find its next football coach a sixth-grade teacher at Cloquet Middle School joined former coach Tom Lenarz’s staff as an assistant when he came to the district in 2020 he was the head coach in Barnum for five seasons and an assistant in the former United North Central cooperative program between the Menahga and Sebeka districts The districts have since started individual football programs it was Lenarz and Ojanen who initially “recruited” Klyve to coach in Cloquet “Those guys bringing me in and showing me what Cloquet football is all about got me real excited about it,” Klyve said when Jeff told us he was going to hang it up I started thinking maybe this is another opportunity.” “We’ve got some work to do in places like the weight room just getting stronger and doing the stuff to get the numbers up,” he said “But I’m excited for the opportunity to do that and keep building this program.” Klyve played in the Detroit Lakes program that also has plenty of tradition according to Cloquet activities director Paul Riess but it was his passion for sports and young people that made him the right choice you can hear his excitement about football and sports in general,” Riess said “He’s out at all the games and he’s in it for the right reasons — he loves kids but he also loves the game of football on top of that Klyve has already started getting ready for the season going through equipment and mapping out the remainder of the Lumberjacks’ offseason “He’s already started making plans for the summer and is ready to get started running with it,” Riess said CLOQUET — The city completed an inventory of its water lines following a new rule by the Environmental Protection Agency aimed at identifying and mitigating lead in drinking water Though the city did not identify any lead lines it found over 2,000 water lines which had the potential for lead contamination the city of Cloquet sent letters to homeowners and renters with water pipes made of either galvanized steel or unknown material both of which could contaminate water with lead “We're trying to be transparent and send out as much information as possible but it's not an indication that there's elevated lead levels in your water,” said Caleb Peterson The EPA required water systems across the country to conduct a systemwide inventory of their water service lines by Oct maps and permits to identify potential lead or galvanized pipes “We did not find any lead service lines in Cloquet nor do I have any record that there has ever been any lead service lines in Cloquet,” Peterson said The EPA is requiring the eventual replacement of galvanized service lines which have been dipped in a protective zinc coating and are prone to absorbing lead from upstream service lines that may contain lead a portion of the service line may have been identified as non-lead but the city still classified the lines as unknown because the length of the service line hasn’t been identified Exposure to lead can have serious health ramifications according to the World Health Organization it can affect IQ and attention span and in adults it can bring increased risks of heart disease high blood pressure and negatively impact the kidneys and nervous system Cloquet resident Barb Moore was worried after receiving a letter from the city alerting her that the water in the home she’s lived in for 44 years may contain lead who suffers from negative health effects from a formaldehyde exposure nearly 40 years ago She now plans to get her water tested to determine if the lead levels in her water are hazardous “I would hope that the city would really dedicate itself to making sure the people here have safe water,” she said The city of Cloquet regularly tests its water for lead and copper and hasn’t found its water to contain hazardous levels of lead Homeowners in Cloquet own the service line from the meter to the curb or to the water shutoff at the street The city does not have funding in place to assist property owners with the cost of replacing the customer-owned portion of the service line Peterson is hopeful that state and federal funding opportunities will become available “We're hoping this will open up a funding source to help .. private property owners deal with the pipe on their side from the curb stop into the house,” he said The city’s aging galvanized water pipes eventually will need to be replaced anyway as the lines are becoming brittle over time and are increasingly at risk of leaking Galvanized water pipes were commonly installed in Cloquet over 50 years ago and are more common in the older parts of town “It's something that needs to be addressed it's not necessarily an indication of a problem,” he said An exciting moment for a group of Cloquet students as they visited USG on Tuesday USG manufactures high performance ceiling tiles that are used around the world listened to a panel of women about their experiences and toured the facility as part of an International Women’s Day event isn’t sure what she wants to do yet after graduation That’s why she wanted to check it out And I like to explore every opportunity I can before I’m done with school.” told us that about 50 women work at the plant CLOQUET — The Cloquet Country Club consists of over 6,000 yards of rolling green grass It’s not a bad spot to be if you’re a goose an estimated 200 Canada geese appear to have halted their southern migration and made the Cloquet Country Club their permanent home The geese have become territorial and damaged the turf “They got kind of to the point where they wouldn't even move for golf carts or wouldn't even fly away,” Carlson said The Cloquet Country Club is considering hosting a special goose hunt in hopes of either thinning the population or encouraging them to continue their migration south To prevent a free-for-all and potentially dangerous situation with firearms the hunt will be limited to a select number of Cloquet Country Club members Carlson will wait until the deer season is over before deciding whether to move forward with the hunt hunters would still have to follow state and federal waterfowl hunting regulations swivel gun or shotguns larger than 10 gauge 21 in northern Minnesota and has a five-bag limit After residing on the golf course through the winter Carlson estimates that up to 30 goslings were born on the course The volume of droppings on the green has become a nuisance and the geese have become so comfortable that routine maintenance like mowing has become difficult The club is working alongside the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to coordinate the hunt The DNR provided several possible solutions the country club could implement to address the problem like altering the habitat harassing the geese with all-terrain vehicles and dogs removing their nests and even rounding up and euthanizing the geese Carlson said the club has tried several of these tactics “We kind of tried the dogs and kind of tried some other tactics,” Carlson said Because the Cloquet Country Club is located within city limits the hunt required the approval of the City Council The city approved a goose hunt for a single year If the hunt proves to be an effective means of controlling the population it could be brought to the council for future hunts Because the golf course is in a sparsely populated part of town City Administrator Tim Peterson believes having a hunt will be safe Councilor Shiela Lamb — the only councilor to vote against the hunt — expressed concern about a perceived lack of plan around the hunt and the impact it would have on the wildlife because I do believe we have a responsibility to our wildlife,” Lamb told the council Carlson has noticed the country club’s goose population seems to have naturally declined or wouldn't do it if we didn't have to,” Carlson said The Cloquet Area Chamber of Commerce is proud to be hosting the 28th Annual Home Business and Sports Show at Black Bear Casino “There’s really something for everyone.” One of the first things you’ll see is a unique barrel sauna from Heritage Nordic and was inspired by a moment at the airport Owner and builder Troy Persaud said the show is fun for them “It gives me a place to showcase some neat ideas Everything I build is really just creativity coming out of my mind.” there’s plenty of craft vendors to check out as well The show is free and parking is free as well CLOQUET — After Donald Trump was reelected president of the United States a group of disaffected citizens began meeting as an informal social support group at Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Cloquet The group's first official meeting in December attracted roughly 60 people She now estimates the group has approximately 350 members and they talked (about) who they were and why they were here and what they were upset about,” said co-organizer Joan Peterson They wanted to talk to other like-minded people who felt the same way they did.” After realizing the amount of local disillusionment and political anxiety Korby and Peterson shifted to turning the informal support group into a viable grassroots political organization Korby said the group took a unanimous vote to join Indivisible a nationwide progressive movement founded after Trump's first election forming We the People: Cloquet Area Indivisible Korby said the group is built on three central tenets: support “The action piece is things like planning for protests,” Korby said with Peterson noting the group has held on average one each month since it was founded participated in a national President’s Day protest and held a letter campaign mailing pink slips to Trump National Day of Action,” a nationwide protest of Trump and his adviser Elon Musk on Saturday the group held a gathering to create protest signs on Friday Rallies will take place locally at the Duluth City Hall at 10 a.m and in Cloquet on the corner of Highway 33 and Cloquet Avenue at 4 p.m Local artist Kris Nelson led the sign-making event She directed attendees — many of whom had never picketed before — on how to make effective signs She emphasized using bold colors and letters “It helps me get control of my feelings and get it out there a retired Wrenshall Public Schools art teacher is known locally for painting intricate and detailed designs on chairs Nelson’s art doesn’t shy away from the political Nelson said it is very upsetting to see the attempted dismantling of the U.S Department of Education by the Trump administration “I want to encourage people to use their voice to use my voice through my art,” Nelson said Both Korby and Peterson are longtime political activists Korby campaigned for anti-smoking laws in the early 2000s Peterson has been involved in the anti-gun violence movement since her sister was killed by a firearm Many of the group’s members are entirely new to political activism and protest and fearing cuts to Social Security and Medicare she said she’s felt compelled to do something “I felt helpless sitting at home,” Blomb said Though the group is made up of largely Democratic voters it has also attracted independents and Republicans although we have a lot of Democrats who are active “But our group is nonpartisan and nonreligious.” Peterson said the group formed out of people feeling isolated and craving like-minded community meetings are designed to be social and fun to keep people's spirits up “This is heavy stuff here that we're dealing with A recent executive order by Trump targeting the Smithsonian Institution drove Carol Klitzke director of the Carlton County Historical Society where she was making a sign that read “Hands Off Our History.” Klitzke said she is worried about the precedent being set by Trump at the Smithsonian trickling down to local historical societies and museums “As the director of the historical society I fear having government tell me what I can — what we can — display or talk about in our county museum,” she said The Cloquet Area Fire District has outgrown their current fire hall And they’ve been planning for a decade for a new spot It would be at 22nd Street and Cloquet Avenue Largely due to the increase in call volumes and the response to the call volume And additional specialized rescue equipment we’ve purchased over the years.” The hope is to secure bonding money this session for the project One of their main focuses right now is recruitment and retention and having a facility that has room for wellness and health is important Town Hall Meeting Date: February 3 Time: 6 PM Location: Cloquet Public LibraryTown Hall Meeting Date: February 4 Time: 6 PM Location: Perch Lake Town HallTown Hall Meeting Date: February 5 Time: 6 PM Location: Thomson Town HallTown Hall Meeting Date: February 6 Time: 6 PM Location: Brevator Town Hall (East) Open House Date: February 10 Time: 5 – 7 PMOpen House Date: February 11 Time: 1 – 3 PMLocation: Cloquet Area Fire District – 508 Cloquet Avenue Details: Attendees will have the opportunity to tour the existing facility and speak directly with fire district representatives Public Hearing Date: February 12 Time: 6 PM Location: Carlton County Government Services Building Details: This formal session will allow community members to provide official comments on the proposed project before final decisions are made For more information: https://www.cloquetareafiredistrict.com/facility