Perfect Duluth Day

From the Ripsaw Archive | June 1999

RipsawArchiveJune1999

Ten years ago, cartoonist Israel Malachi poked fun at Duluth City Councilor Marcia Hales for pushing an ordinance that made it a ticketable offense to play a car stereo loud enough to be heard 50 feet away.

Here we are, a decade later, and pretty much no one remembers this silly ordinance exists.

Recently the Duluth City Council approved ordinances establishing a curfew for minors and banning skateboarding in Canal Park. I’m hoping some night I’ll see a kid in Canal Park blasting Kenny Loggins’ “Footloose” and engaging in a manic fit of skateboarding.

By the way, is there a companion ordinance stating that more efforts should be initiated to “attract and retain young professionals” now?

Anyway, I’ll keep singing the virtues of Duluth. Councilors, you go ahead and keep proving me wrong. I mean really, did you learn nothing from Footloose? Nothing at all?