News and Current Affairs
UMD faculty union and senate denounce outgoing U of M president’s compensation package
In a letter to the University of Minnesota Board of Regents, leaders of two faculty organizations on the Duluth campus call the compensation package of the outgoing system president “excessive” and a “golden parachute.”
University of Minnesota President Eric Kaler announced in July his intention to step down from his position in 2019, saying in a statement that his seven years as president exceeds the national average and the university will benefit from a fresh perspective.
“Quite simply, it is time,” he said, noting he intends to work as president emeritus for one year to continue momentum on the university’s $4 billion “Driven” campaign. The fundraising effort is seeking to raise $1 billion for students, $2 billion for faculty and research, and $1 billion for university initiatives and outreach. (more…)
West Theater renovation adds second theater property
Duluth Reader publisher and West Theater owner Robert Boone has purchased 321 N. Central Ave., next to his West Theater renovation project. The building, constructed in 1913, is the former Alhambra Theater and most recently housed Interior Tomato, a hydroponic gardening store.
An alternative weekly newspaper publisher currently renovating a West Duluth movie theater has purchased a second historic but mostly forgotten theater adjacent to his current project. (more…)
Ursa Minor Brewing opening Sept. 26
Ben Hugus, Mark Hugus and Andrew Scrignoli – Photo by Lissa Maki
Duluth’s Lincoln Park Craft District will gain a third brewery by the month’s end. Ursa Minor Brewing, a five-barrel brewery that will also serve wood-fired pizzas, has announced it’s opening Sept. 26. (more…)
Crashing into 2332 W. Third St.
Left: 2018 crash at 2332 W. Third St. (Duluth News Tribune photo by Steve Kuchera)
Right: 1965 crash at same location. (Duluth News Tribune staff photo)
It happens at least once every 53 years or so. A motor vehicle smashes into the storefront on the corner of 24th Avenue West and Third Street.
Sept. 11, 2018 | Bus crashes into runaway SUV in Lincoln Park
Aug. 12, 1965 | Freak crash sends auto inside store
BusinessNorth owners purchase Lake Superior Magazine
Left to right above: New Lake Superior Magazine owners Beth Bily and Ron Brochu, former owners Cindy Hayden and Paul Hayden
Two longtime, Duluth-based media organizations with a combined 66 years in existence are now under the same ownership following the Aug. 31 sale of Lake Superior Magazine and its associated books and merchandising operations to the publishers of BusinessNorth and Scenic Range News Forum. The entities announced the sale in a news release today. (more…)
Congdon Pumphouse highlights historic home tour
A 19th Century Duluth pump house was converted into living space by Elisabeth Congdon in 1937. The property will be open during the Duluth Preservation Alliance Historic Property Tour Sept. 16.
Duluth has dozens of spectacular waterfront properties with amazing Lake Superior views but only one home has a front porch featuring metal wave deflectors and living room windows equipped with hurricane shutters. (more…)
Thirsty Pagan Brewing moving to Soo Line Depot
The Superior Telegram reports Thirsty Pagan Brewing will move to the Soo Line Depot at 1615 Winter St. in January.
“The move marks a step into the brick-and-mortar phase — owning a building instead of leasing,” the story notes. “The depot also offers more private seating options for meetings, events and parties, although the total number of seats will remain roughly the same. … Groups already meet regularly at Thirsty Pagan, but the current configuration isn’t ideal for privacy. At about 7,500 square feet, the depot will provide more space to spread into.”
Funding agreement in place for St. Louis River cleanup
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Steel Corp. announced an agreement yesterday to undertake a $75 million cleanup and restoration project at the former Duluth Works site on the St. Louis River at Spirit Lake in Duluth. This is part of a larger effort to restore the St. Louis River Area of Concern through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. (more…)
Craft cider coming soon to Duluth
Duluth will soon have its first, and second, hard cideries. Duluth Cider is planning for a mid-to-late September opening date, while Wild State Cider expects to open before the year’s end. (more…)
Duluth planning for passenger cruise ship stops
The Duluth City Council and Duluth Economic Development Authority have approved funding to help establish a temporary customs facility to allow Great Lakes cruise ship passengers to disembark in Duluth.
As Minnesota Public Radio reports, “Duluth is not expecting massive oceangoing cruise ships the size of small cities to drop anchor in its harbor,” but instead is looking for smaller adventure cruises “that can accommodate up to about 200 passengers, plus another 100-plus crewmembers.”
MPR: Duluth as a cruise stop? With City Council vote, it’s one step closer
PDD Quiz: August 2018 in Review
Which headlines caught your eye this month? Which escaped your attention? Mourn the waning summer and the inexorable march of time with this month’s PDD Quiz!
The next quiz, on bygone community events and festivals, will be published on Sept. 16. Please email question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Sept. 12. (more…)
Conflicted Feelings: Moose Lake
Moose Lake is close enough to Duluth, I feel like I should have an opinion about the recent court decision that lets the Minnesota Sex Offender Program continue operating as it has been, despite the fact that as of two years ago, “nobody has ever been fully released. More than 40 have died while in commitment. The oldest man here is 94, and several are older than 70” [via PBS].
I don’t know anyone in the facility. I don’t know anyone who works for the facility. I believe in rehabilitation but I might be naive. I believe life sentences should be part of the court’s sentencing, not a civil commitment after, but that might be splitting hairs.
I don’t want to imagine that someone in the government could decide I could never walk free again without recourse to a trial by my peers. But I would not commit the kind of crime these men have.
I could stand some help thinking this through.
R.I.P. Carter Hotel
The Duluth News Tribune reports the vacant Carter Hotel building at 17 N. Second Ave. E. will be torn down. The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa will replace it with a surface parking lot for its Fond-du-Lac Casino. (more…)
Duluth top city for paycheck stretching, according to indeed.com
Indeed.com released a report today entitled, “US Cities Where Salaries Go Furthest: 2018.” Of 185 metro cities, the one that topped the list for stretching the buying power of a paycheck is Duluth. (more…)
Will they take the “Duluth” out of the Duluth Harbor South Breakwater Outer Light?
The West Central Tribune of Willmar reports the Willmar City Council is considering bringing the Duluth Harbor South Breakwater Outer Light to the west-central Minnesota community.
Story link: Could a lighthouse soon light the way for boaters on Willmar’s lakes? (more…)
New sign celebrates Snively Monument
A new informational sign will be installed at the recently refurbished Snively Monument on West Skyline Parkway. The Duluth Preservation Alliance will hold a sign dedication ceremony on Monday, Aug. 13, 3 p.m., at the Snively Monument, located just east of the Stewart Creek Bridge on the scenic roadway. (more…)
PDD Quiz: July 2018 in Review
As another month of summer comes to a close, we look back at the events that made headlines. Quiz on to test your knowledge of July happenings!
The next PDD Quiz, on Duluth murals, will be published on Aug. 12. Email question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by Aug. 9. (more…)
Cancer battle pushes sale of iconic West Duluth store
Joel Russell stands outside Central Sales, a surplus store his family has owned for more than 30 years.
An iconic and ruggedly unique surplus store in the heart of West Duluth has been put up for sale as its longtime owner prepares to fight a serious health issue. (more…)
Silent hero of Boundary Waters blowdown subject of new movie
The heroic story of a man who led one of Minnesota’s largest disaster rescue efforts will be told in a motion picture planned for release in 2019. (more…)
Duluth Screen Printing will celebrate Flagship store July 4
Anthony Rogentine, GM, chats with a group of customers as they enter the store. Photo by Alex Byom.
Duluth Screen Printing Co. recently opened a multi-purpose shop in Canal Park called Flagship. The new space is serving as a retail store and office for the company, which has its main production facility in Duluth’s East Hillside.
A launch party for the new Flagship store will be held on Wednesday, July 4. The location is 345 S. Lake Ave., between Adventure Zone and Old Chicago. (more…)
Beleaguered Sound restaurant closed, but could reopen soon
Sound, the not-quite six-month-old restaurant occupying the ground floor of the former Duluth City Hall building at 132 E. Superior St., closed on Friday. Dennis Kempton, a public relations professional connected to the restaurant, announced on Facebook today that owner Alison Underthun has backed out of the project. A new group of partners will relaunch the business soon, according to Kempton. (more…)
Shanty Bottle Shop will have new owners
Shanty Bottle Shop owner Pam Crotty waves goodbye outside the front door of her business. Crotty has sold the store after nearly four decades in beer, wine and liquor sales.
An iconic, family-run East Hillside liquor store will change hands next month after four generations served the public’s rapidly changing tastes in beer, wine and spirits. (more…)
Thirsty Pagan hires new brewer
Kathleen Culhane – Photo by Lissa Maki
Thirsty Pagan Brewing in Superior welcomes a new brewer this week. Kathleen Culhane is relocating from the Twin Cities to the Twin Ports for the gig. Her official start date is June 25. (more…)
PDD Quiz: June 2018 in Review
Plenty of headlines made waves this month; do you remember the details? Quiz on to test your smarts!
The next PDD Quiz, on Buffalo Bill Cody’s dealings with Duluth, will be published on July 15. Email question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by July 11. (more…)
Challenge: Describe other things like Rolling Stone describes Duluth
The way Ana Marie Cox describes Duluth in her article “A Night Among the Trump Believers Way Up North” really needs its own genre. Here’s a quote from the original piece to give you a sense of it:
Lake Superior’s merciless beauty crashes up against a town whose shoreside skyline is dominated by stolid, brutalist mid-century relics and precarious-seeming industrial shipping contraptions, rusty and mostly silent. Downtown, every surface is covered with a thin layer of grime. It is, in other words, Trump Country.
Genius, right? In the comments, leave your ideas for how Ana Marie Cox would describe other things in Duluth! (more…)