Category: Duluth

  • The affordability we can’t afford

    The affordability we can’t afford

    Americans like to argue, but seem to agree that we don’t have enough money. The median household income in St. Louis County runs just below $58,000 a year, about $30,000 for individuals. Half make less, and these folks certainly know how hard it is to cover rising expenses. Nevertheless, candidates who support publicly funded health…

  • Wanna hear the most annoying sound in Duluth?

    Wanna hear the most annoying sound in Duluth?

    Hey, wanna hear the most annoying sound in the world? That would be the sound of the fully loaded freighter Presque Isle scraping the side of the canal on its way out of the Port of Duluth this morning. Nobody was hurt. Somebody, however, has a bad case of the Mondays. Related posts: No related…

  • The haunting truth of human nature

    The haunting truth of human nature

    For the past couple years I’ve been reading old Hibbing newspapers for my book. I find that reading every paper from every year is exhausting but still the best way to research. This method provides context about everything going on in the community, including the national and international news that shaped people’s attitudes. So I’ve…

  • Mayor Larson wins in Duluth while council sees changes

    Mayor Larson wins in Duluth while council sees changes

    Mayor Emily Larson cruised to re-election over challenger David Nolle in Tuesday’s municipal elections. Larson won by more than 5,000 votes, about 63 percent to Nolle’s 36 percent. Larson heads an administration that has largely continued the progressive policies begun under former mayor Don Ness. She also inherited the challenges that have bedeviled Duluth for…

  • Festival of Sail enters Duluth harbor

    Festival of Sail enters Duluth harbor

    Tens of thousands of people pile along the lakeshore as the 2019 Duluth Festival of Sail returns with vintage ships and an enormous rubber duck. Here’s some video from today’s parade of sails as vintage replica ships like the U.S.S. Niagara enter the Duluth-Superior Harbor: The family and I took in the Tall Ships festival…

  • In Duluth, spring returns with national champs and international shipping

    In Duluth, spring returns with national champs and international shipping

    After a temporary setback with last week’s winter storm, spring seems to have finally arrived … again … in Northern Minnesota. One sure sign includes the arrival of the first “saltie” into the Port of Duluth-Superior The Maltese-flagged Maria G arrived in the Port of Duluth to take on a load of grain early this…

  • The stunning cost of keeping what we already have

    The stunning cost of keeping what we already have

    The Minnesota Department of Transportation recently announced that Duluth’s John A. Blatnik Bridge, known locally as the “High Bridge,” would need to be replaced in 2028, less than seventy years after it opened to traffic in 1961. Brady Slater of the Duluth News Tribune reported March 14 that Minnesota would be on the hook for…

  • Bankruptcy claims remaining ShopKo stores, including Duluth

    Bankruptcy claims remaining ShopKo stores, including Duluth

    ShopKo announced today that bankruptcy would force it to close all its remaining stores, including six in Northeastern and Central Minnesota, by June 16. Stores in Duluth, Ely, Two Harbors, Aitkin, Mora and Moose Lake are among those that will close. ShopKo’s woes are nothing new, and are in keeping with general problems in the…

  • Just our duck; the quack is back

    Just our duck; the quack is back

    You’ll just have to go to the festival yourself to see if the duck is everything it’s … QUACKED UP TO BE! Ha ha ha! Ha. ha. ha … OK, can we talk about this?

  • Lake Superior more than 80 percent iced over

    Lake Superior more than 80 percent iced over

    We’ve reached the part of winter that either steels or breaks Minnesotans. No, it’s not *that* cold, but it’s cold. Yeah, we’re used to snow, but we’re *tired* of it. We don’t need a new snow blower. We need a psychologist. It’s been a colder and snowier winter than average; not the most wicked winter…

  • Duluth flat flap highlights housing challenges

    Duluth flat flap highlights housing challenges

    Duluth housing controversy seems pretty familiar if you’ve seen markets like Minneapolis-St. Paul.

  • Prominent indy TV festival coming to Duluth

    Prominent indy TV festival coming to Duluth

    Next October Duluth will host the Independent TV Festival. This gathering of independent television producers, directors and writers routinely connects major TV and streaming distributors with new projects. On Monday, the ITV Festival announced it would move from Vermont to Northern Minnesota. It’s a major coup for the arts scene in our region. The Oct…

  • Domino’s picks Duluth for pothole marketing scheme

    Domino’s picks Duluth for pothole marketing scheme

    Tonight, the Duluth City Council is poised to accept $5,000 from Domino’s Pizza to repair some of the city’s legendary potholes. You might have seen Domino’s “Paving for Pizza” nationwide television ad campaign that ran over the last several months. The premise is that potholes cause pizzas in the backseat of cars to go flying…

  • Angry Lake Superior shuts down Duluth’s lakefront

    Angry Lake Superior shuts down Duluth’s lakefront

    An autumn storm infuriated Lake Superior today, sending large, dangerous waves into Canal Park and forcing the evacuation of much of the lakefront area. A gale warning remains in effect until midnight tonight. The Duluth News Tribune reported on the power outages, damage and flooding found along the shores of Lake Superior. Duluth photographer Andrew…

  • Lake Superior generates cold wind, clean beer

    Lake Superior generates cold wind, clean beer

    Duluth brags about its local beer. Maybe too much. But brewers and scientists alike suggest that Lake Superior water really does aid the process of beermaking. Dan Kraker recently filed a story on this topic for Minnesota Public Radio. He talks to several local brewers who swear by the pure water available to them in…