Local fire departments were called out in subzero temperatures on Tuesday, January 21, 2014 to fight a fire at 860 5th Avenue West at 7:56 a.m. The occupants of the house, Linda Strohl and Gerald Roser, were able to make it through thick smoke in the house to get outside. They were transported by Cook County Ambulance to North Shore […]
EDA to focus on small business development
Whether or not to hire a director was once again the topic of discussion at the Cook County – Grand Marais Economic Development Authority (EDA) meeting on Tuesday, January 14, 2014. EDA Board Member and County Commissioner Heidi Doo-Kirk said the county board was very concerned about the director job description on the EDA website. Doo-Kirk said there is confusion […]
South Fowl snowmobile trail litigation will be lengthy
At the Tuesday, January 21, 2014 County Board meeting Assistant County Attorney Molly Hicken gave an update on the South Fowl snowmobile trail lawsuit in which the county, along with Conservationists with Common Sense (CWCS) of Ely and the Arrowhead Coalition for Multiple Use (ACMU), are interveners. The county and the nonprofit organizations have aligned themselves with the U.S. Forest […]
School calendar may be adjusted
In the wake of unusually brutal cold temperatures and frequent snowfalls, the superintendent of Cook County Schools told the board Jan. 9, 2014 that there may be some changes made in the school calendar. Speaking of the statewide shutdown of schools ordered by the governor on Jan. 6, Beth Schwarz said the local schools would have been closed anyway, even […]
School and county working out details at YMCA
School District 166 Superintendent Beth Schwarz and School Board Chair Jeanne Anderson appeared before the Cook County commissioners on Tuesday, January 21, 2014, thanking the county board for the collaboration that led to the construction of the Cook County Community YMCA on the west end of the school building. Schwarz said, “It’s a wonderful asset to the community and the […]
Lessons from the Beargrease trail
As I write this week’s Unorganized Territory, I am comfortably sitting at home on my couch, drinking a cup of hot chocolate and munching on a late night snack of pretzels. I am still shivering from my ride home from work and from the time it took to plug my car in out there in minus 10 degrees, but I’m […]
Loggers need to slow down
Logging is an important component of our local industry, and it’s important to keep safety in mind. Log trucks are driving these county roads way too fast. Winter trucking is even more dangerous as the roads are snow packed and slippery, much narrower from the high, graded banks and visibility is much poorer at intersections because of these snowplowed piles. […]
Community lost right to say no
With some 900 YMCA members it seems we may also have up to 4,000 Gail Andersons who seem to feel disgusted, cheated, and lied to as she explains, “we the people” did not get what was promised. Regardless, I think Ms. Marshall of the YMCA has done a good job bringing the project together, cutting costs, and building community morale […]
Kids need outdoors, not YMCA
If upon inspection the new Grand Marais YMCA seems a nice building, should it not be so considering the 9.3 million tax dollars spent? I only hope the pool and remodeled gym will serve the schools well. But the point may be lost. Our tax vote was to promote more opportunity for residents to experience our unique, countywide wilderness, which […]