News - The Timberjay

Greenwood appoints JoAnn Bassing as interim clerk

GREENWOOD TWP- With a written resignation from elected clerk Debby Spicer in hand, the Greenwood Town Board, on Tuesday, appointed JoAnn Bassing as the interim clerk on a 3-1 vote. Supervisor Mike … more

Jodi Summit | 6/15/22

Charges filed in two Ely-area incidents

ELY – A Grand Rapids resident and an Ely man face felony charges in connection with two separate incidents here last week including kidnapping and pulling a gun in a local tavern.Austin James … more

Keith Vandervort | 6/15/22

Grant Hauschild spoke with a group of Tower area residents on Sunday at Nordic Home North.

Grant Hauschild campaigns in the area

REGIONAL— As he travels around the vast Senate district he hopes to represent following November’s election, Grant Hauschild said he’s hearing common themes, particularly in … more

Marshall Helmberger | 6/15/22

Obituaries: June 17, 2022

Roy H. SoderbergRoy H. Soderberg, 95-1/2, died on Friday, June 10, 2022, after a brief stay at Vermilion Senior Living in Tower. Roy’s family would like to thank the staff at Vermilion Senior … more

6/15/22

Vermilion Country School graduates include, from left, Owen Stellmach, Mahlia Shuster, Dakota Hanninen and Gage Monsrud.

Graduation 2022

Ely High School, North Woods School, and Vermilion Country School held commencement activities for their respective Classes of 2022 this past week. more

6/8/22

Water main and sewer pipes were lined up in the front yard of the Ely school campus this week.

ISD 696 must wait for school project cost overrun answers

ELY— School officials here will have to wait a bit longer for a solution to their approximately $4 million cost overrun on their ongoing school construction project. They had hoped that … more

Marshall Helmberger | 6/8/22

Timber Days Grand Marshal Steve Kalaja poses with his children, Parker and Evan on either side, Lila and Chloe in the middle, and Vince kneeling below.

Timber Days tabs Kajala for parade grand marshal

COOK- For those eagerly awaiting the big parade on Sunday that caps off the three-day Timber Days festival here, a word of advice. If the parade moves at the speed of its grand marshal, Steve Kajala, … more

David Colburn | 6/8/22

Greenwood Clerk Debby Spicer resigns, in writing this time

GREENWOOD TWP- In a terse six-word sentence, Greenwood Clerk Debby Spicer resigned, in writing, from her position, effective May 31.She left a simple signed note which stated “I quit,” in … more

Jodi Summit | 6/8/22

From left, The Conservation Fund CEO Larry Selzer, Indian Land Tenure Foundation President Cris Stainbrook, and Bois Forte Chairperson Cathy Chavers listen to the Bois Forte Singers perform during Tuesday's land restoration ceremony at Nett Lake.

Historic transaction returns tribal lands

NETT LAKE- The size of the Bois Forte Band reservation sectors at Nett Lake and Deer Creek grew by an astounding 28,000 acres on Tuesday through the largest tribal buyback of ancestral lands ever … more

David Colburn | 6/8/22

IRRR grants OK’d for area communities

REGIONAL— The Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board (IRRR), on Tuesday, awarded just over $7.1 million in grants and other funding affecting communities across the Taconite Tax Relief … more

Marshall Helmberger | 6/8/22

Flood waters begin to drop at Crane and Kab

REGIONAL- The flood-stricken communities of Crane Lake and Kabetogama had a new reason for hope last weekend when the inflow of water creating historic rises in lake levels finally fell below the … more

David Colburn | 6/8/22

High water and Canadian COVID restrictions have left Sand Point Lodge struggling to survive.

Lodge owners battle floods and Canada to stay afloat

SAND POINT LAKE- It was love at first sight when Doug Hall ventured from his Georgia home to discover the beauty of the region encompassing Crane Lake and Sand Point Lake, and like many, it … more

David Colburn | 6/8/22

Jim Zupancich (center), with help from the large Zupancich family, cut the ribbon to signify the grand opening of the new store.

Ely Zup’s Market celebrates a family tradition

ELY - The family of the late John Zupancich formally celebrated the continuation of a century-plus tradition with the grand opening of the new Zup’s Food Market here last Thursday.“This … more

Keith Vandervort | 6/8/22

Ely population continues to decrease as city grapples with rising costs

ELY- The population of this small community at the end of the road continues to decrease despite a robust real estate market that continues to see just about everything selling. Meanwhile, city … more

Keith Vandervort | 6/8/22

WELY has a new three-month lease on life after Bois Forte officials chose to delay the station's planned closing until Sept. 1 to facilitate a possible sale of the station should a viable buyer become available.

WELY will remain on the air until September

ELY- The fate of radio station WELY took another twist this past week as Bois Forte tribal officials set aside an earlier decision to close the station for good on Wednesday, extending its life for … more

David Colburn | 6/1/22

Oliver Weidemann, 5, of Ely, helps place 1,120 American flags at the Ely Cemetery for Memorial Day.

The North Country marks Memorial Day

Many North Country communities paused on Monday to honor the sacrifices of area military personnel who died in the line of service with Memorial Day observances. more

Timberjay staff | 6/1/22

An artist's rendering of the proposed townhome project in Tower.

THS intends to proceed with townhome project

TOWER— Barring something unexpected, it appears ground could be broken on the long-delayed townhome project at the Tower harbor as early as next month. That’s the word in a letter of … more

Marshall Helmberger | 6/1/22

Primary for Ely mayor set for Aug. 10

ELY – City of Ely residents will go to the polls on Tuesday, Aug. 10 to vote in a primary election for the mayoral seat. A two-week filing period for the city of Ely mayor and three city … more

Keith Vandervort | 6/1/22

Current COVID-19 wave is slowly losing steam

REGIONAL- The latest statewide numbers indicate the most recent COVID-19 surge has leveled out and is losing steam, but case levels in St. Louis County are still at levels comparable to mid-February … more

David Colburn | 6/1/22

Gain a different perspective of the impact of rising flood waters in the Rainy River Basin through shots taken by Timberjay photographers last week from a float plane by checking the gallery at the end of this article.

Flood waters near peak

REGIONAL- The last thing the flood-weary people of Kabetogama and Crane Lake wanted to see this past week was more rain, but Sunday and Monday thunderstorms over the Rainy River Basin may have been … more

David Colburn | 6/1/22

Survey: Gas prices, inflation impact summer travel decisions

REGIONAL— More than two years into the pandemic, Americans report that gas prices and inflation will impact their summer travel decisions more than concerns about COVID-19, according to … more

Marshall Helmberger | 6/1/22 | 1 comment

The two new pups at the International Wolf Center take a siesta. They’ll be available for public viewing beginning Friday, June 3.

New wolf pups now ready for prime time

ELY - The International Wolf Center’s two new pups here are available for public viewing starting today, Friday, June 3.One way for Ely Wolf Center visitors to see the pups is through an … more

Keith Vandervort | 6/1/22

USFS pauses all prescribed burns for the summer

REGIONAL - The Superior National Forest did not go forward with the Kangas 6 and 7 Prescribed Fire units, located south of Ely, last week as scheduled, and will not start fires anytime this spring … more

Keith Vandervort | 6/1/22

Breitung Township preparing for summer road projects

SOUDAN- The good news from Breitung Township Maintenance Supervisor Tom Gorsma is that the township is almost caught up on spring road maintenance. In April, Gorsma had told the board that they were … more

Jodi Summit | 6/1/22

Former Ely Chamber of Commerce leader Linda Fryer's impact on the community will be recognized with a street to be named after her.

Street to be renamed in honor of Linda Fryer

ELY – At the request of the Ely Tourism Bureau, the city council here will honor a longtime Chamber of Commerce executive director by renaming a portion of Seventh Avenue, adjacent to Whiteside … more

Keith Vandervort | 5/25/22