County board funds biomass feasibility study



Pending approval of a written contract, the county board voted Tuesday, September 14, 2010 to dedicate a good portion of its Timber Fund to a study on the feasibility of biomass energy production in Cook County. George Wilkes of the Cook County Local Energy Project believes biomassgenerated energy makes sense for Cook County. He told the county board that it […]

To burn or not to burn?



Grand Marais City Council will host a public meeting at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 29 at City Hall to discuss the future of the city’s burn pile. Theburn pile has been a topic of discussion for council and city staff since last October. Smoke from the burning debris of a very full burn pile caused problems for both the North […]

New veterans services officer appointed



At the close of the Tuesday, September 14, 2010 county board meeting, Personnel Director Janet Simonen quietly informed the commissioners that former Veterans Services Officer Richard McKenzie had passed away after an extended illness. Grand Portage Veterans Services Officer Clarence Everson had been filling the position at no charge since March. Earlier in the meeting, Simonen told the board that […]

Health hazards in county courthouse?



If you take your dog with you everywhere you go, be prepared to be stopped at the doors of the Cook County Courthouse. And if you smoke, don’t smoke too close to the building. On Tuesday, September 21, 2010, the Cook County Safety Committee and Management Advisory Team (MAT) requested that the county board approve the posting of a sign […]

Heart of the Continent connects to Grand Portage



In July, the Heart of the Continent Partnership held a meeting in Grand Portage with about 30 stakeholders gathering to discuss the heart of the continent region, described by Steering Committee Chair Doug Franchot as “the lands and communities from Lake Superior to Lake of the Woods and the border lakes region.” Welcoming attendees to the opening of the July […]

County joins Heart of the Continent



You never know what a canoe trip can do to bring people together. Three people representing widely varying interests sat together at the Tuesday, September 14, 2010 county board meeting to invite commissioners to join them in a cooperative venture called the Heart of the Continent Partnership (HOCP). The first some people heard of it was last summer when 60 […]

Local PBS series aims to promote dialogue about mental health



“If tough had anything to do with it, my mom wouldn’t have had a mental illness.” That’s one of the first lines in a documentary film called Look It in the Eye recently produced by filmmaker Dan Woods of Superior for the Human Development Center (HDC), nonprofit mental health agency with offices in five Northland counties, including one in Grand […]

Community Ed offers Fungi Among Us



On September 27, Gianrico Vasquez, mycologist from Italy, will present a Fungi Lesson and talk about his Cook County mushroom experiences. and will be held in the Jane Mianowski Conference Room. It will cover the biology of mushrooms and the most common edible and poisonous mushrooms found in Cook County. You’ll be surprise and amazed how many different species are […]

Gunflint Trail Plein Air sneak peek Oct. 3



Take a drive up the Gunflint Trail Oct. 3, when area lodges are offering a sneak peek at entries in the plein air art contest. The viewing is designed as a “lodge-to-lodge” event, and signs will be posted all along the Trail. The event runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. “Come see beautiful artwork, meet artists and enjoy our […]

Community Ed offers night photography workshop



Learn to photograph at night by joining photographer Bryan Hansel for a night of shooting in the dark. After 45 minutes of classroom time, students will head out to photograph the night, learn about ISO and noise, long exposures, and setting the correct white balance to get outstanding night photos. Also discussed will be making star trail photos, light painting […]