Mark Nicklawske
Two miracles inspire new cannabis grow store in Lincoln Park
Marios Glitsos, right, and fiancé Brooke Joyce are opening Grow Your Own Garden Supply at 1801 W. Michigan St. in Lincoln Park. The store will specialize in cannabis cultivation. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
It took at least two miracles for longtime cannabis grower Marios Glitsos to open a new Duluth garden supply store. (more…)
Hermantown Fleet Farm property sold to North Dakota investors
The Fleet Farm property in Hermantown has been sold to a North Dakota investment firm for $30 million. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
The Fleet Farm big-box retail store property in Hermantown has been sold to a real estate investment firm based in Fargo, North Dakota for $30 million. (more…)
Wired Whisker Cat Café, Duluth’s first cat-adoption coffee shop, opening later this year
Misha Smith stands outside the future home of Wired Whisker Cat Café, 1823 E. Superior St. The building served as home to Endion Square Children’s Center for 33 years. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
Duluth will soon see its first cat café open with a special lounge where customers can drink coffee and meet the “purr-fect” adoptable pet.
Jungle North Holdings purchased the former Endion Square Children’s Center, 1823 E. Superior St., in November and is currently directing a full building renovation. St. Louis County records show the new owners paid $216,000 for the 1,800-square-foot property. (more…)
Sunshine Café leads the list of 2023 restaurant casualties
The Sunshine Café in West Duluth closed at the outset of the pandemic in March 2020. Owners announced this year it will not reopen. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
One of Duluth’s most significant restaurant closures of 2023 technically happened in 2020. The Sunshine Café closed more than three years ago as COVID-19 swept the country. What was considered a temporary closure at the time was finally announced as permanent in September 2023.
The Twin Ports restaurant scene has stabilized and grown as the pandemic has wound down, but the closure of the beloved diner at 5719 Grand Ave. in West Duluth can be seen as evidence the coronavirus fallout lingers. The Sunshine Café had been a neighborhood gathering place for more than three decades. (more…)
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. (more…)
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. (more…)
Rebuilt Civil War veteran’s house part of historic properties tour
Diane and Steve Dick stand outside their renovated home on 43rd Avenue East and London Road. The home was built in 1889 by Civil War veteran John Mallman and will be featured on the Duluth Preservation Alliance Historic Properties Tour this Sunday. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)
A long abandoned duplex in Duluth’s Lakeside neighborhood was a complete wreck that showed no sign of its historic past when Steve and Diane Dick purchased it. Their simple renovation plan was to make room for an aging parent and host regular gatherings with their children and grandchildren.
Eight years on, the project has accomplished all the necessary family duties and more. The house stands out among its stately London Road neighbors and keeps an important piece of history alive: its original owners were Civil War veteran and early mining-exploration Captain John Mallman and his wife Catherine. (more…)
New restaurant to offer salads, soups and mystical gifts
Cori Zastera, left, and her husband Jason, stand in front of the Ritual Salad location at 1802 W. Superior St. in Lincoln Park. The new restaurant is scheduled to open in October. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske).
A new fast-casual restaurant featuring healthy salads and soups is in the works for Lincoln Park as the booming Duluth neighborhood sees redevelopment push east along Superior Street toward Garfield Avenue. (more…)
State fast-tracks funds for I-35 pedestrian bridge in Lincoln Park
A cyclist travels over I-35 on the Lincoln Park pedestrian bridge last week. The bridge has been targeted for replacement by the Minnesota Department of Transportation. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
A longstanding I-35 pedestrian bridge that connects Lincoln Park to its working waterfront and serves two well-traveled trail systems through the city has been fast tracked for replacement by state officials. (more…)
Duluth’s historic Wirth building gets facelift
The historic Wirth building, 13 W. Superior St., at left, received a major facelift this month. Owners said more than 30 splaying limestone blocks were replaced or repaired. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske).
A historic architectural gem in Duluth received a major facelift this month as crews repaired the aging facade of the city’s first pharmacy — a building that now serves as home to a couple that pioneered downtown living in the 1990s. (more…)
Round-up Bar and Grill plans new patio space
Round-up Bar and Grill owner Mike Ronning stands outside the site of a new side patio. Landscaping, furniture, games and a small stage will be built on the site of the former Fine Frog Emporium. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
A longstanding Duluth bar known for its family-owned roots and connection to country music will add a new outdoor patio after an adjacent antique store was condemned and torn down earlier this year.
The Round-up Bar and Grill, 415 E. Fourth St., will construct space for outdoor dining and bar service along with a small stage on the east side of its building this summer. Fencing and signage have already been assembled and final landscaping work, lighting and furniture installation is expected to take place in the next few weeks. (more…)
Lincoln Park building renovation unearths 1893 newspapers, Buffalo Bill history
Duluth Grill Family of Restaurants co-owner Louis Hanson looks over a newspaper from 1893. The business is renovating the former Duluth Press building and discovered dozens of newspapers in the floorboards. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)
Buffalo Bill Cody has been buried under the floorboards of a historic Duluth building for 130 years.
Owners of a Lincoln Park business recently discovered a variety of 19th century newspapers inside a building financed by the legendary wild west star and used by his sister to operate a weekly news publication. The treasure trove turned up during major building renovations this winter. (more…)
Edgewater Resort and Waterpark taking down abandoned wing
The Edgewater Resort and Waterpark will be tearing down a portion of its complex that served as its main motel for decades. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)
A long-running and ever-changing Duluth hotel will tear down the oldest part of its sprawling complex as owners begin work on a new renovation plan for the Endion neighborhood tourist destination.
The Edgewater Resort and Waterpark, 2400 London Road, started demolition work this month on a vacant, two-story wing that was constructed in 1965 and served as the Edgewater Motel for decades. The Edgewater Resort and its adjacent waterpark will remain open during the project. (more…)
Timber structure washes up near Lakewalk
A large timber structure has washed up on the Lake Superior shoreline just west of the Beacon Pointe condominium and hotel complex. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
Another large timber structure has washed up on the Lake Superior shoreline just west of the Beacon Pointe condominium and hotel complex.
The structure appeared on the shoreline below the Duluth Lakewalk trail following an April 4 snow and wind storm. It is made up of 12 x 12 timbers, metal cables and bolts and looks to be the size of Chevrolet Silverado crew cab pick-up truck. (more…)
Duluth Grill group plans new Lincoln Park burger bar
The Duluth Grill Family Restaurant Group will take over operations at the former Coach’s Bar and Grill, 2113 W. Superior St. The new restaurant will be called Burger Paradox. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske).
A popular Lincoln Park restaurant group is adding another bar and grill to its neighborhood food empire.
Duluth Grill Family of Restaurants co-owner Tom Hanson said this week his organization has secured a 10-year lease on the longtime home of Mitch’s Bar and Grill, 2113 W. Superior St. The site was most recently home to the short-lived Coach’s Bar & Grill. (more…)
West Duluth theater project moves forward, seeks city loan
The Alhambra Theater sits just to the east of the West Theatre on Central Avenue in West Duluth (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)
A long-lost vaudeville theater renovation gained ground this week when city officials authorized grant money to fund a business loan for the West Duluth entertainment district project.
The Duluth Economic Development Authority approved a $150,000 grant Jan. 25 to the city of Duluth 1200 Fund for restoration work at the Alhambra Theater, 321 N. Central Ave. The move allows the 1200 Fund to loan building owner Paladin Properties LLC a total of $200,000 for project completion. (more…)
Miller Hill Mall Perkins leads list of 2022 restaurant closings
The Miller Hill Mall Perkins closed in March after 37 years of service. The national chain still operates at two other Duluth sites. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
Restaurants come and go all the time but some seem like they will be around forever. The Miller Hill Mall Perkins is a perfect example. The naugahyde booths, chrome-plated tables, gigantic breakfast menu and sweet pies made each visit feel like the one before — like eating in a time machine that would never end.
But then it did end. (more…)
Globe News, landmark store in Superior, changing ownership
Globe News owner Tom Unterberger, left, has sold his store to a new ownership group led by longtime customer Jon Fritsche of Poplar. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
A landmark Superior collectible store — along with its iconic sign — has been sold to new owners who plan to maintain all its nostalgic charm.
Globe News owner Tom Unterberger announced last week that he has sold the historic building at Tower Avenue and Belknap Street along with all its contents to a partnership group headed by a longtime customer. Unterberger and his wife, Jill, purchased the building with the help of his parents in 1982 and slowly converted its corner newsstand into a retail store filled with books, music, trading cards and a wide variety of vintage gifts. (more…)
Loiselle Liquor ends 88-year run; new owners plan name change
Loiselle Liquor Store, 413 E. Fourth St., was owned and operated by the Loiselle family for 88 years. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske).
The oldest liquor store in Duluth has changed hands and will take on a new name for the first time in nearly nine decades.
Loiselle Liquor Store, 413 E. Fourth St., was sold by the Loiselle family this spring to Matthew Krueger and Katherine Eagle of Cloquet. St. Louis County property tax records showed the sale price at $360,000 for the two-story building — which was constructed in 1893 as the Goering Block. (more…)
Duluth Grill makes big Lincoln Park land moves
Duluth Grill Family of Restaurants co-owner Tom Hanson stands atop OMC Smokehouse. The former Kemps Dairy property and new parking lot are in the background. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)
A popular Duluth restaurant group has acquired the largest piece of open land in the Lincoln Park business district and plans to build apartments, a parking garage and new street-level business space on the property — similar to plans announced by its previous owner.
The purchase is part of several big land moves revolving around the Duluth Grill Family of Restaurants. (more…)
Mid-century modern work highlighted in Duluth home tour
The Hart House at 1545 Skyline Drive soon after construction was completed in 1952. The Chester Bowl ski jump can be seen in the background to the left of the house. (Photo courtesy of Aethan Hart)
The legendary Frank Lloyd Wright may not have been the architect but his influence is all over a striking little house tucked into a wooded lot just around the bend from Chester Park.
Known as the Hart house, the property at 1545 Skyline Parkway will be one of six featured homes in the 2022 Duluth Preservation Alliance Historic Properties Tour beginning at 11 am Sunday, Sept. 18. The annual event allows ticket holders to roam around inside some of the most beautiful homes in the city, this year featuring a collection of unusual mid-century modern works. (more…)
Lincoln Park trades print shop for restaurant, tea and spices
JS Print Group moved into the Lincoln Park neighborhood about five years ago. The business then outgrew the location at 1927 W. Superior St. and moved this summer to a larger facility in the Central Hillside.
(Photos by Mark Nicklawske)
A fast-growing print shop has moved out of Lincoln Park for a bigger building and plans are in the works for two new businesses — including an Indonesian restaurant — to take over the prime Superior Street location. (more…)
Canal Park restaurant expands into Island Lake landmark
An investment group has purchased the former Boondocks saloon & grill and drive in on the south side of Island Lake. Investment group spokesperson Andrew Knutson, right, said the group plans to revitalize the roadside business district. Lake Ave Restaurant and Bar owner Derek Snyder, center, will take over food operations and Luke Anderson, left, has been named head chef at the new location. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)
A popular Canal Park eatery started serving smash burgers and ice cream at a historic drive-in this summer while work is underway to expand operations at the site and create a new destination restaurant just south of Island Lake. (more…)
Hotel Pikku, an early Lincoln Park revival project, is up for sale
The building at 1923 W. Superior St. was constructed in 1899 and houses the Hotel Pikku and Hemlock Leather works. (Photo: gregfollmer.com)
A small, stylish boutique hotel that opened in a renovated historic building and helped transform Lincoln Park into a hip, trendy neighborhood is now for sale.
The three-suite, second-floor Hotel Pikku, 1923 W. Superior St., opened after owners Chelsy Whittington and Andy Matson purchased the building in 2016 and spent more than a year remodeling it. Hemlock Leatherworks, a custom shoemaker, is located on the ground floor. (more…)
New Lincoln Park housing takes over old furniture row
The Anderson Furniture Building, 2032 W. Superior St., was recently purchased by a Duluth developer. The building was constructed in 1910 for use by the Otis Elevator Company. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske).
A historic “Furniture Row” anchor store in Duluth’s Lincoln Park Craft District has new owners who plan to renovate the building and add more housing and retail space to the booming neighborhood. The former Anderson Furniture building at 2032 W. Superior St. was purchased earlier this year by Ohana Holdings LLC of Duluth. St. Louis County property tax records show the company purchased the three-story, 37,000-square-foot property for $500,000. (more…)