From successful to silly, and potentially both, Duluthians remain as active as ever on the petition website change.org. Not that fewer than a dozen petitions per year is technically active, but it is as active as ever.

As is generally the case, a petition pertaining to the local colleges was the most popular, but with an asterisk. A statewide petition that relates to Duluth deserves equal mention.

Minnesota Senator Karin Housley, who represents Forest Lake, Stillwater and the surrounding St. Croix Valley, started a petition to Save the Growler in Minnesota. Though not technically a Duluth petition, it does significantly pertain to Duluth’s Bent Paddle Brewing, which is nearing a 20,000-barrels-of-beer-per-year production cap that would prevent it from selling 64-ounce growlers. That petition had 12,392 supporters as of the morning of Dec. 11.

But the true local champion of petitions is Meghan McFarling, who petitioned the administrations of the College of St. Scholastica, the University of Minnesota Duluth and Lake Superior College on Dec. 3 to cancel classes due to poor travel conditions in the aftermath of a snowstorm. It may not have been successful in terms of action — St. Scholastica cancelled morning sessions; the rest of Duluth’s higher learning went on as scheduled — but in terms of supporters, it was the far-and-away winner in 2019.

Below is a breakdown of the past year’s petitions, from the strongly supported to the poorly supported. Again, the numbers represent supporters as of the morning of Dec. 11.

7,753
Cancel classes for St. Scholastica, UMD and Lake Superior College

527
Support “Friends of the Climate” in their efforts to stop a Natural Gas Plant

401
Keep Chester Bowl Dog Friendly

336
Help make the Incline Steps a Recreational Hiking Trail

255
Ticket To Ride Needs To Put Duluth in the Right Place

108
Remove Susan Chapman from teaching role in ISD709

29
We Want to Declare a Climate Emergency in Duluth

18
Sign for Community Gardens to Protect Drivers from Vehicular Accidents

14
Close Sadi’s Smoke Shop