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Virginia, Eveleth, Gilbert approve shared high school plan
Tonight voters in the Virginia and Eveleth-Gilbert school districts appear to have approved a plan to build a shared high school that would serve both communities. The districts have not yet released vote totals, but will on Wednesday. Unofficial reports showed the measure passing in all three communities. Despite the lack of information, referendum supporters…
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What if Bob was one of us? Dylan Fest features music, culture and Joan Osborne
What if Bob was one of us? Just a slob like one of us? Well, he pretty much is. Duluth’s Dylan Fest will hold its annual celebration of its native son Bob Dylan May 18-26, 2019. Meanwhile Dylan’s Iron Range hometown of Hibbing continues efforts to commemorate its complex influence on one of the world’s…
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Monumental school vote approaches in Virginia, Eveleth-Gilbert districts
This Tuesday, May 14, voters in the Virginia and Eveleth-Gilbert school districts will vote in a school bond referendum. The result will shape the future of these communities and, quite possibly, the entire educational strategy of the Mesabi Iron Range. If that sounds like I’m laying it on a bit thick, consider the following: If…
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World’s largest mining company moves on PolyMet
Today, global mining giant Glencore moves one big step closer to owning the proposed Northern Minnesota copper-nickel venture PolyMet. Glencore is the largest mining company in the world by revenue with properties on six continents. It is three times larger than the next largest mining company. It is 11 times larger than the world’s largest…
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Budget ne-boat-iations: State leaders seek to break impasse on fishing opener
It’s almost tradition now. Like powdered wigs and rapping three times on the door of the weather-predicting groundhog in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Yes, this weekend Minnesota state legislative leaders and the governor will negotiate the biennial budget while angling on the opening weekend of the walleye and northern pike season. Gov. Tim Walz and House Speaker…
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The think piece on Dorothy’s ruby slippers you didn’t know you needed
The iconic film “The Wizard of Oz” is 80 years old. It’s such a cultural touchstone that at least five generations have now seen it so many times that they know the lines. And like “The Wizard of Oz,” we’ve well repeated the story of how a pair of costume ruby slippers worn by the…
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Grandpa and the way home
At one time my grandpa kept a bar in his house in Keewatin, a small wood-paneled room full of 1950s and ‘60s sports memorabilia, Norwegian flags and light-up beer signs. In 1990 or so, I think I was around 10, he showed me the things on the shelves and said “I’m dying. One day all…
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On comments
I’ve often spoken about my stint as the 21-year-old editor of a small daily newspaper on the Iron Range. You could argue I was too young, too inexperienced, and too pie-eyed for that whole thing to work, and that’s all objectively true, but I sure learned a hell of a lot. One of the duties…
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‘Think spring’ with latest Great Northern Radio Show
You can now hear the latest podcast for the Great Northern Radio Show from our April 13 broadcast at the Chief Theater in Bemidji, Minnesota. It was the 30th variety show I’ve written, produced and hosted for Northern Community Radio, our fifth from the “First City on the Mississippi River.” It was the first time…
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Radinovich to resign from Iron Range Resources post after hiring controversy
Joe Radinovich will resign his high-level post with the Minnesota Department of Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation after last week’s report detailing irregularities in the hiring process. Radinovich is a former state representative from Crosby. He was the 2018 8th District DFL Congressional nominee. He previously served at the IRRRB as a politically-appointed Assistant Commissioner.…
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Cliffs CEO ‘in no hurry’ to build 2nd HBI plant
These days, Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves seems positively jubilant in his quarterly earnings calls with investors and the media. And why not? The first quarter of the year is normally pretty slow. That’s when iron ore ships are docked until ice retreats from the Great Lakes. Nevertheless, Cliffs performed well ahead of expectations in the…
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Report details irregularities in IRRRB hiring of former Congressional candidate
A recent investigative news story highlights the unusual way in which former State Rep. and recent Congressional candidate Joe Radinovich was appointed to a high level permanent job at the Minnesota Department of Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation. Marshall Helmberger of the Tower Timberjay published the report Wednesday. The story quickly spread to media outlets…
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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…
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When the vote fails, rural districts hold few cards
On Tuesday, voters in the Floodwood, Minn., school district rejected a $700,000 operating bond referendum by a vote of 352-336. This close vote in a small district will make a big difference. Teachers and officials suggest up to eight teachers could lose their jobs without the local funding. Elementary sections could be combined. Most electives…
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Prairie River Minerals aims to restart scram mining on western Mesabi
Amid high demand and temporarily limited global supply, another new scram mining venture aims to reclaim natural iron ore on the western Mesabi Iron Range. Prairie River Minerals seeks to mine about 1.3 million tons of iron ore annually, mostly in Itasca County, hiring about 125 union workers in the process. The chief partners in…