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Range lawmakers decry KSTP story
For your viewing pleasure, here is a sternly-worded letter sent by members of the Iron Range legislative delegation to KSTP and most Minnesota media outlets regarding KSTP’s hit job on Ironworld last week. This letter originated out of State Rep. and House Majority Leader Tony Sertich’s office, is signed by the entire Range delegation and…
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Filing tidbits
Some northern Minnesota filing news … In Duluth’s House District 7B, Brandon Clokey has finally filed, rounding out the DFL pool at five candidates: Roger Reinert, Marsh Stenersen, John Derbis, Daniel Maryland and Clokey. I would put Reinert at the head of this pack with Stenersen within striking distance and the others looking for a…
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Cliffs now sole owner of Eveleth mine facility
Consolidation continues in Iron Range mine ownership. The Duluth News-Tribune reports that Cleveland Cliffs is now the sole owner of United Taconite near Eveleth (formerly EvTac). This is the iron mine and processing plant combo that reopened after a deal with the Chinese government a few years ago. Related posts: No related posts.
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Local media picks up on Ironworld/KSTP flap
The Mesabi Daily News, and sister publication Hibbing Daily Tribune, ran a story about KSTP’s Ironworld hit piece from last week. Across the Range, readers collectively ask: “What is KSTP?” Bill Hanna talked to the #2 in the KSTP newsroom, Iron Range Resources Commissioner Sandy Layman and others. Layman took former State Rep. and Taxpayer’s…
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Go to hell, KSTP
Let me begin by saying the way things have been done on the Iron Range hasn’t always been perfect. It’s an area with a unique governance structure because of our mining tax system and that system has taken time to make more efficient. There’s been plenty to criticize and I’ve been one of the critics.…
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Range school woes like canaries in the coal mine
Public schools everywhere face challenges from unfunded federal mandates, tighter state aid and local tax bases that are tapped out. But here on the Iron Range some special circumstances threaten the very existence of two districts, which I think are like canaries in the coal mine for school districts all over the state. First, in…
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Just deal with the scary flood pit already!
Janna Goerdt of the Duluth News-Tribune reports today on the ongoing saga of the Canisteo Mine Pit near Bovey. The long abandoned mine pit has been filling with water for decades, causing what many residents and scientists fear will be a major flood risk. Others, including those at the DNR charged with monitoring the pit,…
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For sale, cheep!
Economic gloom reaches the Iron Range. A sign seen along a country highway north of the western Mesabi today reads: “Lake home for sale. Cheep!” That’s not a typo. The home is owned by large, sentient birds who can’t afford the rising cost of seed. Related posts: No related posts.
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Iron Ranger profiled in Star Tribune
The front of the state edition of the Star Tribune features Chisholm native Philp Falcone, an Iron Ranger turned New York hedge fund manager, who made it big betting that the mortgage bubble would pop. I don’t know Mr. Falcone, but I wonder if growing up on the Range influenced his success as someone known…
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KSTP readies hit piece on Iron Range landmark
A promo that aired on KSTP Channel 5 in the Twin Cities indicates that everyone’s favorite news whore station is preparing a hit piece on Ironworld. “See what your state dollars are paying for” says one tag line of Monday night’s “expose.” Except I’m betting KSTP lacks the attention to nuance to realize that Ironworld…
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Corrections to Franken parade post
Please note the corrections to the Al Franken Iron Range parade post from earlier in the day. My bad. Related posts: No related posts.
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Franken to appear on Iron Range for 4th of July, RE-UPDATED
UPDATE x2: For real this time! After a great amount of confusion, Franken’s Range parade schedule is finally in my hands. July 3 (today): Al joins the picket line at a labor protest outside the Hibbing Wal-Mart. I have been seeing this picket line the last few days and will be posting about it at…
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First day filers
Iron Range State Reps. Tony Sertich (DFL-Chisholm) of District 5B and Tom Anzelc (DFL-Balsam Township) of District 3A have filed for re-election today. Here are the corresponding press releases. Sertich will face Republican John Larson, a Hibbing bar owner, in the general election. Anzelc will face Republican Marvin Ott, a former county veterans official. I…
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Keeping tabs on job creation results
I don’t always jive with what happens on the editorial page of the Mesabi Daily News, but the MDN fired off a pretty good editorial last Saturday about the proposed hire of an Iron Range business recruiter for our mining-funded state agency Iron Range Resources. Like the MDN, I’m not against business recruiting, but I…
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Industry insiders sour on technology for Iron Range ‘clean coal’ boondoggle
There hasn’t been much to report about Excelsior Energy’s boondoggle proposed Mesaba Energy Project, a coal gasification power plant that would be situated on the Iron Range. The state PUC has not scheduled a final decision on whether or not to force Xcel Energy to buy the high-priced theoretical electricity that would be produced if…