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County heads to court over ice rink concrete



Cook County is embroiled in a complicated civil court proceeding regarding the ice hockey rink at the Cook County Community Center. The county board agreed to proceed with legal action against K. Johnson Construction of Sauk Rapids, Minnesota in June 2016 to seek repair of the ice rink, which is “scaling and flaking.” The county alleges the flaws in the […]

City council considers construction projects in Grand Marais



Howard Hedstrom, chair of the Cook County/Grand Marais Economic Development Authority (EDA) board and EDA Director Mary Somnis presented a letter during the July 27 Grand Marais City Council meeting requesting up to $175,000 to support an upcoming housing project. Hedstrom explained that based on studies on the issue of growth in Grand Marais, one major problem is affordable housing. […]

Schroeder agrees to hike firefighters’ retirement



On July 19, Charlie Muggley presented the Schroeder town board with a copy of proposed changes to the bylaws of the Schroeder Fire Department, changes Muggley and the Schroeder Fire Relief Association had been working on for some time. Under the current agreement firefighters receive $800 per year in a retirement account for the years they have served as long […]

Minnesota Secretary of State visits Saint Louis, Lake and Cook counties



On Wednesday, July 27, Secretary of State Steve Simon traveled to northeast Minnesota to speak at the 70th Annual Convention of the MN State Building & Construction Trades Council. He made a few other stops around the Northland, including a visit with Cook County Auditor Braidy Powers The meeting with Auditor Powers was an opportunity to hear about local elections […]

Surprise, it’s a festival




I sometimes wonder if there are people who wander into Grand Marais on Fisherman’s Picnic weekend without knowing that it is one of the community’s biggest events. I wonder what these folks think of their encounter. Anyone who has previously visited our little harbor town during the “shoulder seasons”—at the beginning of June or the end of September—is in for […]

We have a great community



It often appears that we forget what a neat community we are part of, and we get all torqued out over some of the small things. Basically we are reasonably safe, we are neighbors and friends helping each other where we can, our local government, hospital, and school system are doing their best with the resources we have, and we […]

Pokémon Go! What is it?



My husband and I were listening to a national talk show on the radio while driving last week, and the host was seeking insight from listeners on the Pokémon Go! craze that is taking the country by storm. We weren’t able to listen to it very long, but several men called in who were using the app, and one dad […]

Housing is a critical need for Greater Minnesota



Minnesota needs to invest in infrastructure. That was the prevailing theme of this year’s legislative session from Gov. Mark Dayton and both Democratic and Republican leaders. Yet, despite bipartisan consensus, legislators failed to act on a tremendous opportunity to boost job growth and enhance community stability by increasing affordable housing. Right now, the gap between what Minnesotans earn and what […]

David Wheaton helps CCTA open refurbished tennis courts



In 1991 David Wheaton won the Grand Slam Cup in Munich, beating Michael Chang in straight sets. That same year he beat Ivan Lendl in the third round of Wimbledon, then beat Andre Agassi in the quarterfinals before being knocked out by Boris Becker in the semi-finals. He reached the No. 12 world ranking for Men singles players in 1991, […]