News and Current Affairs Posts

Duluth’s Inn on Gitche Gumee has new owners

The Duluth News Tribune reports Britney and Reilly Brennan are the new owners of the Inn on Gitche Gumee, a destination hotel and cottage on the shore of Lake Superior at the northeast edge of Duluth.

PDD Quiz: November 2023

Shake off the tryptophan hangover and get your brain in gear with this month’s current affairs quiz.

A holiday-themed quiz skiis your way on Dec. 17. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Dec. 12.

Cemetery land sale preserves trails through Morley Heights and Woodland wilderness

Park Hill Cemetery is located off Vermillion Road in the Morley Heights neighborhood of Duluth. The Park Hill Cemetery Association is selling 52-acres of excess property on its northern edge to the city of Duluth. The property will remain natural. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)

A rugged chunk of deep forest in a remote northeast corner of Duluth has been secured for preservation and ongoing trail use after city officials agreed to buy the property, which was reserved for cemetery space more than 100 years ago.

Duluth 2023 General Election Results

With 34 of 34 precincts reporting, here are the results of Duluth’s municipal election.

Duluth Mayor
Roger Reinert – 17,518
Emily Larson – 11,716
Write in – 61

Duluth sidewalk collapses under weight of boom lift

A building maintenance worker on a telescoping boom lift was pinned to the exterior of the Winthrop Building at 325 W. First St. in Downtown Duluth today. The brick sidewalk in front of the building collapsed under two of the boom lift’s four tires, causing the boom to shift, pinning the worker to the building under the weight of the boom. The lift tipped into a vault that extends under the sidewalk.

Duluth 2023 General Election Sample Ballot

Duluth’s Municipal General Election is on Tuesday, Nov. 7. The sample ballot above includes races in Aurora and the Town of White, along with school district races in Mountain Iron-Buhl (ISD #712) and Nett Lake (ISD #707). Duluthians won’t see those races on their ballots, and the city council and school board races on Duluth ballots vary by precinct.

PDD Quiz: October 2023

Test your knowledge of October 2023 headlines with this edition of the PDD quiz.

Batten down the hatches for next month’s maritime-themed PDD quiz, which is set to make port on Nov. 12. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Nov. 8.

River City Records & Books open in Lincoln Park

Chris Huppert shops for phonograph albums Saturday at the newly opened River City Records & Books in Duluth. Huppert had list of 10 hard-to-find albums he was searching for.

Traffic was brisk at River City Records & Books on Saturday. The new store at 1814 W. Superior St. in Duluth’s Lincoln Park Craft District opened on Friday at 3 p.m.

What is the future of Ordean Plaza?

A recent Duluth News Tribune story about plans to convert the top five floors of the Ordean Building into rental housing included a brief mention of the city selling the small park next to it.

This particular little postage stamp of parkland is called Ordean Plaza, a public square across from the Duluth Public Library. It’s part of the larger Fifth Avenue Mall, a late-1960s and early-1970s effort to beautify Fifth Avenue West.

Apartment complex planned for West Duluth

The Duluth News Tribune reports an 80-unit apartment complex called the Residence is being planned on the former Holiday Stationstore location at 3401 Grand Ave. The 1.9-acre site is between the Wheeler Athletic Complex and the ore docks in West Duluth. Merge Urban Development Group, headquartered in Cedar Falls, Iowa, purchased the land from the Duluth Economic Development Authority in 2022.

Gunnar Birkerts and Intuitive Synthesis: The Place of the Duluth Public Library in the History of Modern Architecture

Duluth Public Library in the November 1980 issue of Architectural Record.

Last month, an article appeared in the Duluth News Tribune about the decision to demolish the Duluth Public Library and replace it with something smaller in a shared building. The reasons provided for demolition instead of restoration mostly involve challenges to reprogramming and subdivision created by structural pillars, expensive building systems like insulation in serious need of replacement, and other issues related to years of deferred maintenance.

Hayward record and book store will move to Duluth

The former Riverside Flooring building at 1814 W. Superior St. in Lincoln Park will be home to a new record and book store. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)

A Superior native and long-time music collector who haunted some legendary, long-lost Twin Ports area record stores plans to open his own shop in Duluth’s Lincoln Park Craft District.

Todd Hanson, owner of Hole in the Wall Books and Records in Hayward, has announced plans to open a new store in the former Riverside Flooring building at 1814 W. Superior St. this fall. The store will be called River City Records and Books.

Northeastern Minnesota Book Award Winners for 2023

An old fire tower in the north woods, a busy Duluth harbor on the day tall ships arrive, and an 1894 murder on Minnesota Point are just some of the settings for books honored in this year’s Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards.

PDD Quiz: September 2023

See how many September 2023 headlines you remember with this edition of the PDD quiz.

The next quiz, previewing Halloween shenanigans, will be published on Oct. 15. Submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Oct. 11.

Oasis del Norte restaurant opening soon

The brick-and-mortar Oasis del Norte restaurant in Duluth’s Lincoln Park Craft District finally has an opening date. The Duluth News Tribune reports that Eduardo Sandoval Luna will open the taqueria-style Mexican eatery at 2401 W. Superior St. on Sept. 29, pending inspection from the Minnesota Health Department.

Sandoval Luna has operated the Oasis del Norte taco food trailer since 2015.

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