News and Current Affairs
PDD Quiz: January 2019 in Review
The first month of 2019 is nearly in the books; how much of it do you remember? Take this week’s PDD quiz and find out!
The next PDD quiz, on local sports teams and athletes, will be published on Feb. 10. Please email question suggestions to Alison Moffat at aklawite@d.umn.edu by Feb. 7. (more…)
Hiki Hut: Duluth’s little blue sauna on a trailer
Whitney & Kelby Sundquist – Photo by Lissa Maki
A little blue sauna on a trailer began popping up around Duluth late last year. The Hiki Hut has licensing similar to a food truck, but instead of food it’s serving up nourishing doses of heat and steam. Owners Whitney and Kelby Sundquist aim to encourage sauna appreciation as well as cultivate community. (more…)
“Duluth” is a Small Drill-Hole on Mars?
Over the past few years Duluth has occasionally had colder temps than the temp measured on Mars on the same day. I have gleefully pointed this out to friends in the warm south when it happens.
But, if PDD covered this last year, I missed it — how a small test drill hole on Mars made by the Curiosity Rover get named “Duluth”? (more…)
Kmart gone, Spirit Valley hopes to rebound like Lincoln Park
The Spirit Valley business district sits just east of I-35 and includes a variety of businesses along Grand and Central avenues including the Super One grocery store in the foreground. (Photo by Cory Fechner, Liftoff Aerials)
The Spirit Valley business district in West Duluth took a serious hit in 2018 when Kmart closed but business leaders and city officials believe the area is ripe for a makeover that could match successful redevelopment work in Lincoln Park. (more…)
Interim host keeps the Current’s Duluth music show rolling
Andrea Swensson is serving as guest host of The Duluth Local Show on the Current. (Photo by Leslie Plesser)
The Duluth Local Show, a weekly one-hour radio program featuring music by Duluth-area musicians, will close out 2018 in a transition phase. Mike Novitzki, who had hosted the show since May 2016, announced his resignation in October and his farewell episode aired Dec. 2.
Andrea Swensson, a Moose Lake native who has been an on-air personality and writer at St. Paul-based Minnesota Public Radio’s the Current since 2005, has served as guest host of The Duluth Local Show since Novitzki’s departure. She is also the regular host of an all-Minnesota music show with a similar title, The Local Show. (more…)
PDD Quiz: 2018 in Review
Bid adieu to 2018 with this year-in-review quiz, which tests your memory of local headlines (and PDD current events quizzes).
The next PDD quiz, on the murals of Superior, will be published on Jan. 13. Please email question suggestions to Alison Moffat at aklawite@d.umn.edu by Jan. 10. (more…)
The New Spurs on First: Just a Little Bit Country
Madeline Petersen and Jona Johnson – Photo by Lissa Maki
Two young women recently bought Spurs on First. The entrepreneurs are adding their own flair to the longtime country bar, booking hip hop and rock performers as well as updating drinks and decor. (more…)
Petitioning to Change Duluth in 2018
The most successful petitions at change.org — at least as far as Duluth is concerned — tend to be related to local colleges. A search of “Duluth” on the site finds six petitions in the past three years that have more than 1,000 signatures; five of those are associated with the University of Minnesota Duluth or College of St. Scholastica. (more…)
Selective Focus: Globe Grain Elevator Fire in Superior
https://www.instagram.com/p/Brgf8YblHlx/
Duluth News Tribune: “Historic grain elevator burns in Superior” (more…)
One more year for Marcia Hales’ holiday light display
Marcia Hales’ “Holiday Spirit in the Lights” display in Duluth’s Park Point neighborhood is returning for a final run. (more…)
Independent Television Festival moving to Duluth
The five-day Independent Television Festival is moving from Manchester, Vt. to Duluth. ITV plans to open an office in Duluth early next year and have year-round programming. The company estimates the festival could bring more than $1.5 million into the local economy.
The 14th annual festival is scheduled for Oct. 9-13. It showcases episodic television shows for TV executives, agents and producers from outlets like Netflix and Bravo, but is also open to the public. The goal is to discover new television programs created on independent budgets. (more…)
Duluth to Montgomery Reflections: Pondering the Past
Continuing the podcast series of “Duluth to Montgomery Reflections,” the Duluth NAACP welcomes Henry Banks, host of the Twin Ports-focused “People of Color” program on Wisconsin Public Radio. Banks meets with Ivy Vainio to discuss the various assumptions around the Civil Rights movement. (more…)
City Girl Coffee now in Minnesota Target stores, on Amazon
City Girl Coffee, a Duluth-based coffee roaster dedicated to empowering women in the coffee-growing industry, has announced its varietals and blends are now available on amazon.com and at Minnesota Target locations.
The expanded distribution follows the company’s third anniversary on Nov. 12.
City Girl sources its beans from women-owned or managed farms and cooperatives whenever possible. The brand offers a product line of organic and Fair Trade varietals and blends from Guatemala, Brazil, Sumatra and Peru that are packaged in 12-ounce bags and single-serve cups.
The company was profiled on Perfect Duluth Day in 2016 and featured in Forbes magazine and the New York Times in 2017.
PDD Quiz: November 2018 in Review
Test your knowledge of November headlines with this month-in-review quiz!
The next PDD quiz, on restaurants and bars of yesteryear, will be published on Dec. 16. Please email question suggestions to Alison Moffat at aklawite@d.umn.edu by Dec. 12. (more…)
Missing Person: Janeen Bauer Peters
Update: The body of Janeen Peters was found on Nov. 28 about 500 yards from her vehicle near County Road 2 in Lake County. The vehicle was covered in snow and there were no fresh tracks near it. The cause of death is unknown.
The St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office had asked for the public’s help in locating Peters. She was reported missing on Nov. 19 and was last seen Nov. 11 driving her vehicle north of Duluth on North Shore Drive. Investigators believe on Nov. 13 she was at a restaurant in Duluth.
Duluth 2018 General Election Results
With 4.113 of 4,113 precincts reporting statewide, below are the results for races relevant to Duluth.
FEDERAL OFFICES
United States Senator
Amy Klobuchar – 1,566,015 | 60.30%
Jim Newberger – 940,454 | 36.21%
Dennis Schuller – 66,264 | 2.55%
Paula M. Overby – 23,150 | 0.89%
Write in – 994 | 0.04%
United States Senator (special election to fill two-year term)
Tina Smith – 1,370,375 | 52.97%
Karin Housley – 1,095,777 | 42.35%
Sarah Wellington – 95,634 | 3.7%
Jerry Trooien – 24,369 | 0.94%
Write in – 1,165 | 0.05%
United States Representative, Minnesota District 8
Pete Stauber – 159,388 | 50.71%
Joe Radinovich – 141,972 | 45.17%
Ray “Skip” Sandman – 12,768 | 4.06%
Write in – 178 | 0.06%
(more…)
Duluth Cider opening Nov. 14
Valerie and Jake Scott announced today that Duluth Cider will open Nov. 14. It’s Duluth first cider production facility. Six ciders will be on tap at the opening. Flights of four sample pours will be available, as well as take-home growlers.
For more info on Duluth Cider, visit PDD’s previous story on the subject: “Craft cider coming soon to Duluth.“
Thai restaurant changes name and ownership, stays in family
Thai by Thai restaurant owner Supannee Stamm
After 19 years as a restaurateur, Sumlee Beede has passed her Sala Thai restaurant on to her younger sister Supannee Stamm. The eatery at 114 W. First St. in Downtown Duluth was renamed Thai by Thai on Sept. 1. (more…)
Lincoln Park craft district booms; West End furniture row dies
Robert’s Home Furnishings owner Bob Rothenberger and longtime associate Rick Lowney stand at the counter inside the Lincoln Park store. Rothenberger has worked in the neighborhood for almost 50 years and recently retired, closing the store.Before Lincoln Park became a craft district lined with trendy breweries, colorful boutiques and new restaurants it was called the West End — where furniture was king and Duluthians shopped for sofas, beds and dining room tables. Those days are pretty much over. (more…)
Grand Avenue Nordic Center trail opening soon
(Photo courtesy of Spirit Mountain)
Eric Chandler reports on his Shmotown blog that Duluth’s first cross-country trail system with snowmaking capability is expected to open in December. (more…)
Winery provides another reason to visit North Shore
Photo by Lissa Maki
With its rugged terrain and sometimes unforgiving climate, Lake Superior’s north shore seems like an unlikely place for a winery. But that didn’t deter wine connoisseurs Chuck and Kim Corliss from founding North Shore Winery near the base of Lutsen Mountains in 2015. (more…)
Historic Duluth hotel reborn for modern downtown living
Zenith City Revival LLC owner Mitchell Holmes, left, and designer Kori Kneeland stand in the kitchen of a condominium model at Building No. 12 in downtown Duluth. Zenith City Revival LLC spent more than two years renovating the historic hotel property and is now marketing space inside the building.
Developers have completed major renovation work on a 19th Century Duluth hotel and will market the condominium space to buyers interested in modern downtown living.
Zenith City Revival LLC announced last week a model condominium and more than two floors of unfinished residential space is now open for showing in the rechristened Building No. 12. The historic four-story property at 12 N. Lake Ave. was constructed in 1890 and most recently known as the Gardner Hotel. (more…)
A Duluth to be Proud Of
“I remember the young people on the trip who said, ‘How come we’re not learning this in school? How come we didn’t know that this had happened?’ …it’s an American story.” –Carl Crawford – Human Rights Officer, Duluth to Montgomery Reflections.
We Duluthians are a proud people. We’re proud of our cityscape and the landscape around us. We’re proud of our ability to withstand the cold, even as we complain about it. We’re proud of our ability to move forward, as Mayor Emily Larson expressed in her open letter to the Rolling Stones this past summer. We Duluthians pride ourselves in the fact that we don’t hide from issues but rather actively engage with them. It was this Duluth pride that prompted a new, local podcast from the NAACP. (more…)
Report scores Minnesota’s progress in sustainability
Minnesota’s state agencies are making progress toward sustainability goals according to a report by the Department of Administration’s Office of Enterprise Sustainability.
The Enterprise Sustainability 2017 Annual Report is the first collection of data that documents progress on cutting costs and increasing efficiency through sustainable practices.
The report can be viewed online at mn.gov.