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Former councilor Gardner to seek SD7 seat
Former Duluth city councilor Sharla Gardner announced this week she would seek the DFL endorsement for the Minnesota Senate District 7 seat being vacated by Sen. Roger Reinert (DFL-Duluth). Gardner left office just last week after not seeking re-election last year. Reinert announced he would not seek re-election last Sunday. Shortly afterward, State Rep. Erik Simonson,…
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Essar layoffs signal project hibernation
Around 3 o’clock Friday afternoon, the streets of Nashwauk were busier than usual, a dozen full sized pickups parked outside the town’s two bars, DeNucci’s and Wizards. The bars face each other at the last stop sign I see before heading past Essar Steel, north to my home in the woods of Itasca County on the western Iron Range. “That’s…
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Cold war bombs in the bogs of Northern MN
I came across a fascinating piece of Northern Minnesota history in this Doug Easthouse article “Bombing the Big Bog” in the Minnesota DNR publication, Minnesota Conservation Volunteer. Northern Minnesota gets a lot of attention for its timber and minerals, but it’s also home to many thousand of acres of rich peat bogs. Some of these…
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Emily Larson to be sworn in as Duluth mayor today
Today, Emily Larson will take the oath of office as the new mayor of Duluth, Minnesota. She becomes the first female mayor of this Great Lakes international port city and successor to popular outgoing mayor Don Ness. Here on the Iron Range I refer to this position as the “person we see disproportionately on the…
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Simonson tells supporters he plans Senate run
State Rep. Erik Simonson (DFL-Duluth) told supporters today in an e-mail that he plans to run for the State Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Roger Reinert. Reinert announced this morning he would not seek re-election. Simonson currently represents the 7B side of the district. This is the e-mail, which was forwarded to me: Friends, I…
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Oracle breaks winds of change in 2016
The gas burner spews a flame of blue, red, orange and yellow into the ghostly white sphere above. I’m trying to type on an old manual typewriter, no easy task on a hot flying monstrosity operated by a muskrat. “Gnnaaaaagh!” shouts the muskrat. Steamy breath in cold air, his jaunty captain’s hat adding authority to…
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Duluth senator Reinert won’t run again
State Sen. Roger Reinert (DFL-Duluth) announced today he would not seek re-election in 2016. “2015 was amazing,” said Reinert in his statement. “I finished my first year of law school, was promoted to Lt. Commander in the Navy, and most importantly – got married. 2016 is the right time for the next chapter of life.” Reiner…
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Last chance to be Duluth’s next lift bridge operator
Applicants have until 11:59 p.m. Monday to apply for the highest-profile blue collar job in Duluth: Operator of the Aerial Lift Bridge. Pay starts at $42,444 per year and includes benefits. The gig involves pulling levers to make the bridge go up and pulling levers to make the bridge go down. That’s the fun part, probably what…
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Radinovich to lead Nolan’s campaign
Last week, U.S. Rep. Rick Nolan (D-MN8) announced that former State Rep. and IRRRB assistant commissioner Joe Radinovich would helm his re-election campaign in 2016. This move has been in the works for some time, but the announcement was held until Radinovich had made official his departure from an administrative position at the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation…
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Essar accepts Gov. Dayton’s repayment terms
On Dec. 31, Gov. Mark Dayton announced that Essar Steel Minnesota has accepted the repayment terms he laid out just before Christmas. This means that the company will repay almost $66 million over the next five years. “This project is tremendously important to the Iron Range, supporting more than 700 construction jobs and an expected…
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Iron Range miner to be State of the Union guest
Dan Hill, a laid off Steelworker from United Taconite in Eveleth, will be Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s guest at the State of the Union address on Jan. 12. Hill and his family live outside Hibbing. Hill has been an outspoken union miner during the current downturn in the Iron Range mining industry. According to people present, he…
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MinnesotaBrown’s Top Posts of 2015
Each year, my top posts are usually a hodgepodge of Northern Minnesota interests. Sometimes, however, they present a real trend. That’s certainly the case this year as my posts about troubles in Northern Minnesota’s mining industry and related musings dominated my annual list. More on that below. Before we dive into the specifics, let me again…
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‘Microaggression’ top word of 2015
Before I begin, have you checked to see what you’re supposed to be outraged about today? See, it’s important to know, because the bulk of small talk in our times dwells on anger over etherial, untouchable matters. That might be a red cup at a coffee shop. The comments of a mayor in a small…
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Actual Wolf: Christmas in Chisholm
Merry Christmas! I wasn’t going to post anything today, but then I ran across this holiday offering from Actual Wolf (aka Eric Pollard). He took an old John Prine melody and penned a timely, funny, heartfelt Iron Range Christmas song. Without further ado, here is Actual Wolf, “Christmas in Chisholm“: Love the lyrics on this…
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My Christmas story in the Star Tribune
Merry Christmas, dear reader. I’m very proud to share this piece I wrote for the Star Tribune, which runs today as part of their “10,000 Takes” essay series. It’s a Christmas story, but much more than that. In fact, I’ve never written anything as personal as this piece, certainly not for a large publication. I’m a little…