News and Current Affairs Posts

Duluth is No. 10 on CNN’s Best Towns to Visit in 2024

“Duluth is proving to be a Superior travel spot,” according to CNN, “thanks to its lakeside setting, outdoor activities and creative spirit.” The Zenith City landed at No. 10 on the cable news channel’s list of “American’s Best Towns to Visit.”

Wisconsin dairy set to open specialty cheese shop at RiverWest

New Duluth store manager Jessy Peterson, left, and Vice President of Retail Operations Jamie Swan stand in front of the cheese cases at the Burnett Dairy Cooperative store in Alpha, Wisconsin. The new Duluth store will feature a similar layout. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)

Duluth cheese lovers will have an extraordinary place to shop for their provolone, cheddar and curds next month when an award-winning Wisconsin dairy opens a large specialty store in a newly developed section of the Riverside neighborhood below Spirit Mountain.

Bart Sutter’s new poetry collection revels in the natural world

Bart Sutter in the apple trees

Bart Sutter in the apple trees.

“Lake Superior is God.” Bart Sutter wrote that declaration in his 1998 book Cold Comfort, a collection of essays about “life at the top of the map.” The work was well received by readers, culminating in a Minnesota Book Award for creative nonfiction, and Sutter’s permanent status as a northern force.

PDD Geoguessr Challenge #19: Sister Cities Smörgåsbord

Duluth’s sister cities

Five of the previous six Geoguessr challenges have looked one by one at Duluth’s sister cities: Ohara Isumi, Japan; Rania, Iraqi-Kurdistan; Växjö, Sweden; Petrozavodsk, Russia; and Thunder Bay, Canada. As a Geoguessr game has five rounds, it only makes sense to conclude the series with a challenge that includes all five cities.

Duluth 2024 Primary Election Primer

The filing period for candidates running for federal, state and county offices in Minnesota is from May 21 to June 4. The primary election is Aug. 13; the general election is Nov. 5.

PDD Quiz: May 2024

See how many of this month’s headlines and happenings you remember with this week’s current events quiz!

The next PDD Quiz, scheduled for June 16, will test your knowledge of the Superior Hiking Trail. Please submit question suggestions to Alison Moffat at [email protected] by June 11.

PDD Geoguessr Challenge #18: Duluth’s Sister Cities – Thunder Bay, Canada

Thunder Bay, Canada. Photo based on an interpretation of aerial imagery by Microsoft Flight Simulator.

The last of the sister cities in this series is the first. Thunder Bay was the original sister city of Duluth, a relationship that formally began in 1980. While the Twin Ports is the largest metropolitan area on Lake Superior, Thunder Bay is the largest city, with a population of 110,000.

West Duluth event center planned as MidCoast Catering expands

MidCoast Catering owner Jonathan Reznick stands outside his Central Avenue buildings. Reznick is remodeling the property on the left to create a new event center called The Tasting Room. (Photos by Mark Nicklawske)

A popular Duluth food truck and catering business plans to expand operations later this summer when it opens a new event center adjacent to its West Duluth headquarters.

The Rambler food truck and MidCoast Catering owner Jonathan Reznick said he purchased the Michael Talarico law offices at 313 N. Central Ave. last May. Reznick connected the building to his catering kitchen next door and launched remodeling efforts this spring. The new space will be called the Tasting Room.

PDD Geoguessr Challenge #17: Duluth’s Sister Cities – Petrozavodsk, Russia

Petrozavodsk, Russia. Photo based on an interpretation of aerial imagery by Microsoft Flight Simulator.

Petrozavodsk, Russia became a sister city of Duluth in 1987. With a population of 250,000, its Duluth’s largest sister city. Petrozavodsk is the capitol of the Republic of Karelia and located on the western shore of Lake Onega. Like Duluth, Petrozavodsk has a lakewalk that features art from its sister cities. In 1991, artist Rafael Consuegra won a national competition to represent Duluth in a sister cities sculpture exchange with Petrozavodsk. Below is a picture of his sculpture, The Fisherman, that I took with a disposable camera during my brief visit to the city nearly 20 years ago.

Star Tribune on Homegrown kicking off without the mayor

R. I. P. Florian Chmielewski

Florian Chmielewski, leader of the Chmielewski Funtime Band and a Minnesota state senator from 1971 to 1976, died last week at his home in Sturgeon Lake at the age of 97.

PDD Quiz: April 2024

Test your knowledge of April 2024 headlines and happenings with this current affairs quiz.

You’ll be able to get your hands dirty with the next PDD quiz, which will focus on local gardens, on May 12. Submit question ideas to Alison Moffat [email protected] by May 9.

Two miracles inspire new cannabis grow store in Lincoln Park

Marios Glitsos, right, and fiancé Brooke Joyce are opening Grow Your Own Garden Supply at 1801 W. Michigan St. in Lincoln Park. The store will specialize in cannabis cultivation. (Photo by Mark Nicklawske)

It took at least two miracles for longtime cannabis grower Marios Glitsos to open a new Duluth garden supply store.

A & Dubs won’t open in summer 2024

A & Dubs owners Syl and Sandy Hantz posted on the restaurant’s Facebook page that they will not reopen their drive-in Lincoln Park burger joint this summer. It was founded as an A & W in 1948 and parted with the chain to become A & Dubs in 1973.

PDD Geoguessr Challenge #15: Duluth’s Sister Cities – Växjö, Sweden

Växjö, Sweden. Photo based on an interpretation of aerial imagery by Microsoft Flight Simulator.

Växjö – pronounced Vequa according to the YouTube videos I watched — has been Duluth’s sister city since 1987. With a population of 80,000, it’s approximately the size of Duluth. Also like Duluth, it has a significant student population, with Linnaeus University just outside the city center. In 1991, Växjö became the first city in the world to set a goal of becoming fossil fuel-free. In 2007, it won the Sustainable Energy Europe Award for being the greenest community in the EU.