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Huge rural district faces tough questions on June 8
A press release from St. Louis County Schools about the board’s crucial June 8 vote on a facilities plan for this struggling rural school district: ISD 2142 school board to choose plan for realigning district school locations on June 8; public to vote on the plan in the fallAfter more than a year of study…
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Pawlenty won’t seek third term, foul gas released on the Iron Range: coincidence?
Gov. Tim Pawlenty has enjoyed an antagonistic relationship with the Iron Range and, for that matter, the government he runs during his two terms. Pawlenty announced today he will not seek a third. In honor of the occasion, the Iron Range taconite mine MinnTac released a 10-mile-wide cloud of foul-smelling odorant that reached from Mt.…
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Consolidation IS cooperation
The consultant doing citizen and employee surveys for the Mountain Iron-Buhl and Virginia school districts says there is strong support for consolidation of the districts, not just cohabitation of a high school as previously discussed. (Story from today’s Mesabi Daily News). I find the idea of districts sharing a building but maintaining separate administrations and…
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NIMBY: A poem
Behold, a rhyming poem about the benefits of mining from Mesabi Misadventures. Summary: Don’t be a NIMBY (Not in My Back Yard), be a YIMBY (Yes! in My Back Yard) … or at least a MIMBY (Maybe in My Back Yard), if not a CIMBYBUC (Conditionally in My Back Yard, based upon circumstances). Anyway, it’s…
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Brown on the Air: Monday 6/1 Range Report
I’ll be on the KAXE Morning Show this Monday morning at around 7:20 a.m. Tune in to 91.7 FM in northern Minnesota or catch the live stream at www.kaxe.org anywhere in the world. I’ll be discussing the Iron Range economy, including the shaky status of several big jobs projects. It won’t be a happy segment…
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Hibbing editor’s final column shows what’s at stake in newspaper crisis
Mike Jennings, editor of the Hibbing Daily Tribune, penned his final column today as he announced the newspaper’s decision to lay him off in advance of his summer retirement plans. The paper, like all papers, is facing tremendous financial pressure amid the recession and ever-contracting share of advertising and circulation revenue. They’ll make due without…
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I’m with the band
The MDN pens an editorial in support of a startup organization trying to revitalize the Iron Range music scene. Check it out. Related posts: No related posts.
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The perils of Excelsior’s appeal
The Hibbing Daily Tribune follows up on yesterday’s news of Excelsior Energy’s disappointing day at the state Public Utilities Commission. Excelsior will appeal, of course, but the story points out that such an appeal could create as many problems as it could solve for the beleaguered economic development boondoggle. Related posts: No related posts.
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Range jobless rate shows tiny improvements, but still far worse than average
The Mesabi Daily News reports that the Iron Range jobless rate is hovering in the bad zone, though shows tiny improvement in the Hibbing and Grand Rapids areas. The unemployment rate here is still far worse that the national and state averages and as mining layoffs start being factored in it’s likely to get worse…
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Economy claiming small businesses across the Range
Two anecdotes don’t make evidence but it bears mentioning that two very recognizable downtown Hibbing businesses are closing (The Flower Basket and John Peterson’s photography studio). I’m hearing that conditions are very difficult for small businesses across the Iron Range. With no mines currently in production places like the Range should brace for what could…
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Who runs this joint?
Mike Jennings of the Hibbing Daily Tribune turned in this report of Wednesday night’s (Itasca County Railroad Commission) meeting. It shows a compelling conflict over who the commissioners work for — a company or the citizens of the county. This particular story — over how generous the terms toward Essar Steel are ultimately structured —…
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And that’s all I have to say about that
The state PUC has closed the docket on Excelsior Energy’s foolhardy Xcel Power Purchase Agreement demands for its Mesaba Energy Project. The start-up company will now appeal the decision in hopes of sustaining its government sanctioned boondoggle. All those who have supported this monstrosity will face increasing questions of competence and accountability as economic development…
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The Iron Range builds America … on your TV!
On my book tour for “Overburden: Modern Life on the Iron Range” I’ve heard several positive comments about the new documentary “Iron Range: Minnesota Building America.” Well, I must admit that I haven’t had the chance to see it yet (they’ve been playing it on one of those digital broadcast channels we don’t get out…
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Itasca County moves toward placating global steel company on land deal; vote to come
I’ve been getting reports that last night’s Itasca County Board Meeting enjoyed its share of fireworks. This story from the Grand Rapids Herald-Review details some of the concern over the county’s relationship with Essar Steel, the company that announced plans to build an iron mining and steel operation in Nashwauk. Ultimately, Essar got what it…
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Amid sea of economic turmoil, Range college enrollment floats upward
This MinnPost story from Catherine Conlan explains how and why enrollment is rising at Northeastern Minnesota community and technical colleges. Increasingly, I have seen that regional college enrollment and post-graduation job placement taken together and run through a formula might become a good indicator of regional economic strength. It’d make a worthwhile thesis for an…