PDD News Sieve
Tina Smith is Minnesota’s new U.S. Senator
Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton has selected his lieutenant governor, Tina Smith, to replace Al Franken in the U.S. Senate. Smith said she will run for the seat in 2018.
State Senator Michelle Fischbach of Paynesville will replace Smith as lieutenant governor.
Brewhouse’s pub sauce and salad dressing going retail
Just Take Action, a company that owns and operates several restaurants in Duluth, recently began packaging its Fitger’s Brewhouse Chipotle Pub Sauce and Maple Salad Dressing for retail sale.
The effort, under the name Brewhouse Specialties, is part of a move to focus on developing and marketing products to consumers at home. (more…)
Northern Waters Restaurant will close Dec. 31
Just two years after opening, the Northern Waters Restaurant at Mount Royal Shopping Center will close. A news release from owners Eric and Lynn Goerdt indicates the business has been sold and a new restaurant will replace it in early 2018. (more…)
A peek at what Bent Paddle’s new taproom will look like
Bent Paddle Brewing Company plans to relocate its taproom to a larger, revitalized space in the former Enger & Olson Furniture store building at 1832 W. Michigan St. This new location is directly adjacent to its main production brewery and current taproom in the Lincoln Park neighborhood. (more…)
How tall trees feed themselves
A faculty member at the University of Minnesota Duluth’s Biology Department has conducted research on tall trees that has been published in Nature Plants and will be highlighted in the journal Nature. Assistant Professor Jessica Savage has been teaching at UMD for about a year and is the lead author of a paper detailing the process tall trees use to transport sugar or feed themselves.
The article, “Maintenance of Carbohydrate Transport in Tall Trees,” was published today on nature.com. An online subscription is required to fully nerd out and read the work, but a 277-word abstract is available for free. (more…)
Videos: This Week in Duluth Snowy Owl Rescues
Richard Hoeg spotted a snowy owl on Duluth Harbor ice this morning and at first didn’t think it was out of the ordinary. Returning a few hours later, he noticed the owl had only moved a few feet and didn’t flush when a pair of dogs were checking it out. So with the help of a fish net, wood and duct tape, he pulled the owl in and passed it along to Wildwoods Rehabilitation. Hoeg tells the full story on his 365 Days of Birds blog. (more…)
As Duluth’s image improves, economic cup half empty/full
Duluth is the only metropolitan statistical area in Minnesota to see its gross domestic product decline in 2015 and 2016. That’s the subject of a story by Greta Kaul, data reporter for MinnPost.
But the news isn’t nearly as dire as it might sound. (more…)
Hoops Brewing named a top new brewery by critic John Holl
Craft Beer & Brewing magazine published a list of five “Top New Breweries” this month. Hoops Brewing of Duluth made the list, which was compiled by the magazine’s senior editor, John Holl. (more…)
Up North Lit
The Duluth area saw the launch of a new online literary journal in 2017. Up North Lit debuted in June with its Summer issue and has also published a Fall 2017 issue. (more…)
R.I.P. MP: Morgan Park School preliminary demolition underway
Demolition of outbuildings on the Morgan Park School site began this week. Developer Aaron Schweiger plans to construct several 12-plex apartment buildings on the property. It will be called Morgan Park Estates. (more…)
Missing Person: Todd Sarkala
Update: The Duluth Police Department reports Todd Sarkela has been located and is safe.
The Duluth Police Department is seeking the public’s help in locating Todd Sarkela. He is a 55-year-old white male described as 5-foot 9-inches tall, 120 lbs., with hazel eyes and sandy hair. He was reported missing on Nov. 19. His family last had contact with him on Nov. 16.
Duluth’s Hailey Sault on Outside’s “Best Places to Work” list
Outside Magazine’s list of the 100 best places to work included Duluth Marketing Agency Hailey Sault at the #15 spot. The agency is located in the recently renovated top floor of the Dewitt Seitz building in Canal Park.
Perks mentioned include: Jigsaw puzzle area, dogs, beer and bingo.
According to the stats, PR and Marketing firms made up nearly a quarter of the list, and common traits of companies on the list were “letting Fido sleep under your desk, having plenty of games, and having offices that are close to plenty of adventure.”
Restaurant named Sound will replace the Blind Pig
Chef Patrick Scott Moore is the front person behind a new restaurant in Duluth called Sound, which will open during the first week of January. The location is 132 E. Superior St. in the former Duluth City Hall, a spot previously occupied by the Blind Pig gastro pub and ale house. The space is being leased from Just Take Action, the entity that developed the Blind Pig and its predecessor, Tycoons Alehouse. (more…)
Duluth 2017 General Election Results
With 34 of 34 precincts reporting.
Duluth At-large City Councilor
Top two candidates are elected
Zack Filipovich – 8,749 | 31.48%
Barbara Russ – 6,568 | 23.63%
Janet Kennedy – 6,053 | 21.78%
Rich Updegrove – 5,899 | 21.13%
Write in – 522 | 1.88% (more…)
Weak-willed Duluthian changes opinion
For the 14th time (by Perfect Duluth Day’s count) The Onion has published a story with a Duluth dateline.
The headline reads: Weak-willed coward changes opinion after learning he was wrong
According to the story, “33-year-old coward Benjamin Dyer gave in and changed his opinion … instead of doubling down on his previously held belief like a real man.”
UW-Superior drops Halloween axe on 25 academic programs
The University of Wisconsin-Superior issued a news release this morning announcing it has “suspended several academic programs in an effort to positively affect student success and position itself to continue to remain responsive to regional needs.”
The news release mentioned no program by name. The Duluth News Tribune reports the programs to be dropped include “journalism, multiple science majors, theatre, art history and more — meaning no new students will be admitted into multiple majors, minors and one graduate program.” (more…)
Duluth artist Dean Kegler wins walleye stamp contest
Duluth artist Dean Kegler has won the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ 2018 Minnesota Walleye Stamp contest. His painting was selected by judges from among 11 entries. (more…)
R.I.P. How Sweet it is Cakes
Eileen and Bob Brown are closing How Sweet it is Cakes on Wednesday after more than 20 years in business.
“This has been the most difficult and painful decisions of our lives. Words cannot express our pain and sorrow,” Eileen Brown wrote on the How Sweet it is Cakes Facebook page today.
“There are a number of circumstances that have led up to this decision including but not limited to a significant decline in sales since we’ve moved to our new location, increased cost of product and labor, my and my husband’s health as well as numerous factors that we won’t detail here.” (more…)
Duluth’s Frozen Wiener Storm of 2017
Photo by Shawn Thompson
The city of Duluth is advising the public that locations in Canal Park may not be accessible due to windy conditions and high waves causing water to flood some areas. The Marine Iron Parking lot located closest to the canal, some segments of Canal Park Drive and Harbor Drive have standing water. The city has put up barricades where the areas are not passable. (more…)
C.J. Ham’s “Fullback Life”
A tweet this morning by Duluth’s C.J. Ham shows the bent upper rim of his face-mask after the Minnesota Vikings hard-hitting victory over the Baltimore Ravens. Fullback life indeed.
Bent Paddle 14° ESB grabs gold at Great American Beer Festival
Bent Paddle Brewing won Duluth’s first Great American Beer Festival gold medal two weeks ago. It was the third time 14° ESB won a medal in the Extra Special Bitter category. It took the silver medal in 2015 and the bronze in 2014. (more…)
R.I.P. Sneakers Sports Bar & Grill
Sneakers Sports Bar & Grill announced on Facebook today it has closed after 32 years in business. The bar will become part of the new Lyric Kitchen and Bar, which is also replacing Porter’s restaurant as part of a series of renovation projects at Duluth’s Holiday Center.
A news release by Holiday Inn & Suites-Duluth and Lion Hotel Group notes the Lyric will open for business on Oct. 30 and will feature “a full bar and light-hearted dining experience that celebrates all things Duluth.” The menu will include burgers, pizzas and steaks. Breakfast will be served seven days a week.
Duluth 2017 General Election Sample Ballot
District city council and school board races will appear only on ballots in the appropriate precincts. The location of candidates’ names will be different in each precinct; the names are rotated in accordance with the law.
The League of Women Voters 2017 Voter Guide is available in PDF format at lwvduluth.org.
Duluth residents who wish to vote absentee may do so in person in City Hall room 330 from Oct. 31 until Nov. 3 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 4, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; or Monday, Nov. 6, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Residents who are not registered with their current address must show proof of residency by providing one of the means allowed by law.
DuluthiLeaks: Historic Bridge Report for DM&IR Ore Dock No. 5
How historically significant is West Duluth’s old ore dock and its viaduct and bridges? The Minnesota Department of Transportation retained the consultant team of LHB, Mead & Hunt and 106 Group to produce a multi-purpose study in 2014 that was part of a more comprehensive process involving numerous agencies looking at 140 historic bridges. Part of the goal of the “Local Historic Bridge Report” for the “DM&IR Ore Dock No. 5 Approach” was to gather historical information should the property owner — Canadian National Railway — wish to request a nomination be prepared for the National Register of Historic Places.
For the third edition of DuluthiLeaks — Perfect Duluth Day’s feature in which public documents are released as if they contain secret information leaked from an anonymous whistle blower — we peak into a study of four steel-beam bridges that are part of the mile-long approach to DM&IR Ore Dock No. 5. (more…)