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Statewide: October 4, 2011 Archive

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Around MN: police investigated, Hungry Hill, canoeists nearly shot

Posted at 7:59 AM on October 4, 2011 by Michael Olson
Filed under: Around MN

Minn. law enforcement officers investigated over improper accessing of driver data
The Department of Public Safety has asked 18 law enforcement agencies in Minnesota to look into potential misuse of its Driver and Vehicle Services database concerning one individual (Pioneer Press).

Also on MN Today

A return to traditional foods helps some fight hunger on White Earth Reservation
Hunger is such a problem on some parts of the White Earth Reservation that there is a neighborhood some people call Hungry Hill (MPR News).

Does local matter in regulating pollution in water?
MPR News' Ground Level asked seven Minnesotans why they think local actions matter when it comes to water pollution (MPR News).

Man faces court after shooting loud TV
A man so annoyed by the volume of a TV in his home that he allegedly shot it out with a .44 Magnum handgun made his first court appearance Monday. Daryl Lee Niklewas charged with one count of reckless endangerment, a Class C felony (Grand Forks Herald).

Bemidji council supports Public TV request
Lakeland Public Television is seeking $3 million in state bonding dollars to assist in the construction of a new facility. Bemidji City Council unanimously agree to support that effort and agreed that it should be the city's top priority for bonding funds (Bemidji Pioneer).

Interest groups watch as court grapples with redistricting
A court-appointed panel will take public testimony Tuesday evening in Bloomington on the best way to redraw the state's political boundaries (MPR News).

Suspect sought after canoeists nearly shot
CO Don Bozovsky (Hibbing) reports a couple in a canoe nearly got shot when someone was careless and forgot basic firearm safety rules. Apparently ammo cost was not an issue as it was reported they fired 100 rounds in short order (Pioneer Press).

$1.9 million grant awarded for mining interests
A $1.9 million federal grant will help strengthen mining and steel businesses in the Northeastern Minnesota Mining Cluster (Northland News Center).

Refinery sales in Superior, Meraux complete
The Superior refinery was acquired by a subsidiary of Calumet Specialty Products for a sales price of $214 million plus hydrocarbon inventories valued at approximately $220 million, subject to certain adjustments (Superior Telegram).

Op-Ed
Phil Krinkie: Retire the Blame Game on property taxes
No matter what you call it or how you redistribute state tax dollars to local governments, property tax relief programs reduce transparency and accountability for local government spending (Grand Forks Herald).

"When citizens want to get the facts, they turn to their local newspaper," writes Doug Anstaett in the Ely Echo.

Fall color photo gallery.

Harvest season corn mazes becoming more intricate

Posted at 11:19 AM on October 4, 2011 by Tom Robertson (1 Comments)
Filed under: Arts, Farms, Northwest Minnesota

2011_maze-full2.jpg

Fall is the season of the corn maze, and there's a pretty neat one near Park Rapids.

Creating corn mazes has become a tradition for the owners of Carter's Red Wagon Farm. This year, Tony Carter spent months planning the maze on a grand scale. An aerial view of the 4.5-acre maze shows the shapes of a loon, moose, a canoe and a large map of the state of Minnesota, among other things.

Those navigating the maze will run into state-specific factoids and trivia along the way.

The maze design was done on a computer, then marked out in the field as the corn was planted. The maze pathways were pulled by hand as the plants sprouted.

The maze is the main attraction for Carter's pumpkin parties, set for 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. each Saturday through October. The Red Wagon Farm is a few miles south of Park Rapids off Hubbard County Road 15.

Comment on this post

Hibbing's wings to be trimmed by greed?

Posted at 3:10 PM on October 4, 2011 by Michael Olson
Filed under: Arrowhead, Economy

Elected leaders in Hibbing continue to make their case for air service. Delta airline officials confirmed plans over the summer to reduce or eliminate service to 24 small markets in the Midwest. Delta officials indicated they would like to continue service to Hibbing, but need an increase in its government subsidy to do so.

Hibbing mayor Rick Cannata and City Councilor Patty Shafer discussed the matter with the New York Times:

Q. Delta says the flights are not nearly full, and that it is losing money. Why should they keep flying to Hibbing?

Ms. Shafer: "A lot of these big companies don't care about the people. They just don't care about the needs of people anymore. They only care about their bottom line. If that isn't greed, what is it? It's crazy."

Mr. Cannata: "We're a mining community so we have ups and downs. A lot of the younger people are moving away. One of the reasons I ran for office was to bring manufacturing jobs to Hibbing. There is a big market now for copper-nickel. It is used in cellphones and computers. Northern Minnesota is going to have a booming industry, which is one of the reasons we need to keep the flights. If these airlines are doing this just because they are not making enough money ... Sometimes if smaller counties aren't able to meet their needs they could still provide a service. They should be kind of, you know, they should meet the needs of the people. They should be sympathetic to that. It will be devastating for Hibbing. Businesses will probably be lost."

Part of the rationale for cutting service is that Delta is retiring the Saab turboprops that serve most of these markets. Here's a view of takeoff from MSP in one of the planes.

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