Duluth Lakewalk East Extension
The city of Duluth and the Short Elliott Hendrickson engineering firm are holding a design charette for phases 4 and 5 of the Lakewalk East Extension on Tuesday, Jan. 4, at 9:30 a.m. in the Duluth Radisson Hotel’s Great Hall.
The extension will be from 60th Avenue East to Brighton Beach. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2012. Federal, DNR and local funding has been secured.
The charette will discuss possible routes and trail design. RSVP Matt Bolf (mbolf @ sehinc.com) if you plan to attend.
Rockin’ Honky Tonkin’ Blues @ Sir Ben’s

On Friday, Jan 7 at 9 p.m. Bill Flannagan will be playing some Rockin’ Honky Tonkin’ Blues at Sir Benedict’s Tavern on the Lake. It is free.
Sir Ben’s is the only place around that has Surly Smoke on tap — very tasty. Well worth the trip and hopefully you will enjoy the music also.
PDD’s little upgrade and the glitch with the Smart Unread Comments plugin
If you’re one of those compulsive people who likes to read every single comment on Perfect Duluth Day, the past few days have been a challenge for you.
The “Comments” column on the left is supposed to show which posts have new comments you haven’t read, but it hasn’t been working since PDD upgraded to WordPress 3.0.4 on Dec. 31.
In the meantime, if you’re noticing anything else not functioning properly since the upgrade, let us know. The comment thing is the only thing we’ve noticed.
UPDATE: The problem was fixed on Jan. 3, so there should be no more issues.
Duluth Housekeeping Services
I am looking for someone who would be able to come on Saturdays, once a month, to clean a small home from top to bottom. Does anyone have any leads? I will need references, too. Thanks!
New Year’s Eve Road Report
Anyone been out there today? What’s the story on the road conditions? We may venture out for a bit tonight if we can make the ice-filled walk to the car and then navigate the inch of ice on the driveway.
Amsoil Arena
I went to the game last night and other than the remarkably crappy hockey, I have to say that in my already-addressed 10 years in Duluth, I have never been more proud to be a Duluthian.
What a great building, and as Mayor Ness said, what a great achievement for the men and women who built it and the folks who work there. On my way in I heard employees welcoming people, and on the way out I was thanked for coming and invited back, and it was actually sincere. It’s a beautiful facility and I’m so glad that our community voted to build it.
I think 61% of the city would now vote to get the Bulldogs some defense, but that would be a different referendum.
Anyway, thanks to all of those who worked to get the arena, those who worked on the arena, and those who work in it now. It was a great experience and I’m looking forward to many, many more. I would encourage everyone to visit the open house, even if you’re not a hockey fan. It’s going to be a great venue for concerts and other events, too.
Yellowlab found
A yellowlab puppy, intact, was found on House Street and 101st Ave W. No tags, blue collar. Please call for information — 715-520-0111
From Tragedy to Hope: Haiti Benefit
Tuesday, Jan. 4, 5-8 p.m. at Beaner’s Central
More info at: juliepearcemedicalreliefteam.com.
Live music will feature Jessica Myshack: jessicamyshack.com
Full PDF news release here.
Hope to see you all there!!!
Grand Marais’ Lonnie Dupre to attempt Denali in January
Lonnie Dupre of Grand Marais wants to be the first person to summit Denali solo in January. I wish him good luck and look forward to following his blog at lonniedupre.com along the way!
Learn More Here:
New Year’s Eve Nerdliness
Dragon Port Games will have an overnighter to ring in the New Year. Games of all types are available to play for free, and experts will gladly show you how to play something new. They might even let you win.
Kids are welcome with their parents, too; soft drinks and snacks will be available for purchase.
Swing by. (more…)
Who’s running for mayor in Superior?
Dave Ross is out after two terms as Superior mayor. He’s taking a job as secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Regulation and Licensing.
Candidates must file the required number of signatures by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 4 to get on the ballot for mayor in Superior. (more…)
Best Shows of 2010???
What were some of the best live shows you saw this past year in the Twin Ports area?
Duluth Arena archive photos and timeline
With the grand opening of Amsoil Arena, the News Tribune Attic has been featuring a look back at its predecessor, the Duluth/DECC Arena, with photos and a timeline of notable events. (more…)
Duluth Artist Paints Abroad
You may recall Ken Marunowski, former UMD faculty member and local artist (who premiered his work locally in an unconventional venue, the gallery space at Chester Creek Books and Antiques, last Spring).
Ken has been painting abroad: France, then South Africa, then France again.
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Homegrown Band and Musician Registration for 2011
Band and musician registration for the music festival with the most impressive ratio of big:cheap begins Jan. 15 and ends Feb. 15. If that seems early, it’s ’cause we moved it up after suddenly realizing no one was gonna stop us. (more…)
Duluth Citizenship Test
Today jessige and I were having lunch together and we pondered the question: how long do you have to live here to be considered a native? (We’re both transplants from Eau Claire, Wisconsin that have lived in this area for ten years or more.)
Well, that topic has been done before here on the ol’ PDD (someone else can find it, I wasn’t able to), so we extrapolated it to “what questions would you put on a ‘Duluth Citizenship’ test?”
What are the essential things that you have to know to be considered a native Duluthian?
New Year’s Eve Fun and Funny Pool Table
The Lamplighter in Souptown is under new ownership and is re-opening this week! Remember the L-shaped pool table? It could be yours to win! Just come in and register for the free raffle before midnight! The lucky winner will have five days to haul it to it’s new home! Oh, the stories that it could tell.
Duluth’s Point of Rocks
The main personality split in Duluth occurs about where an interfering spine of rocks comes down from the hill to Superior Street just a few blocks west of midtown. West of this point of rocks Duluth is politically left, east of it it is politically right. But there is a certain uniting force in cold weather, of which Duluth has its share.
–From “Duluth,” an essay by Arthur W. Baum
in the April 16, 1949, Saturday Evening Post
The Peerless Auto Body Fire post on PDD sparked some discussion of the former Peerless location near Point of Rocks, which led to some interest in the history of Point of Rocks.
So, here we go …
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