Opinion

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Inspiration Station

Identifying Your Purpose I was inspired last January by i sparkling icicles in the light of a bright blue sky and knew I needed to capture that scene through the lens of my camera. A plan developed right at that moment, create a calendar for loved ones to share the natural magic of my home as I experience it throughout the year.

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Check Us Out:

March Madness Fun at the Library Happy Library March Madness! Every week, we are inviting patrons to vote for their favorite library resources. Who will reign supreme? New rounds of voting are announced every Thursday at noon.

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From the Outside

The Power of Sport The skier had trained hard for the entire season, and in the off season had competed in track and cross-country to build and maintain the fitness and endurance required to be competitive on the snow. He had done this for six years.

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Masked Fan Speaks

The WILD made some deals and steals! The much-speculated- upon 2023 NHL trade deadline is now officially past us. Most of the hyped-up transactions from around the league in the preceding weeks leading to deadline day did occur, but the day began slowly for the Minnesota WILD.

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Reluctant Editor

There is good news on the housing front in Lake County. A shortage of nearly every kind of housing has been an ongoing problem but efforts in both Two Harbors and Silver Bay may ease the crunch in the next few years. In Silver Bay, the city’s Economic Development Agency (EDA) and the Lake County Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) have been working to bring an affordable income apartment complex to a site on Penn Blvd. The city had also been offering subsidies to individuals interesting in building in town and the idea of housing near the golf course has been bandied about. In Two Harbors, an affordable senior apartment project has gained traction under the watchful eye of the city’s Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) and the recent news that One Roof Community Housing out of Duluth will work with the Lake County HRA to bring affordable homes to empty lots in the city.

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Lake County Press Lake County Breaking News

Nature Nurtures

As I prepare for the soon to be growing season, I am dreaming of big, beautiful dahlias. They are one of my favorite flowers to grow, and they are a great beginner flower for novice gardeners. You can easily start them from seed, and after your first growing season, one plant will turn into many with just a little know-how. This is thanks to the development of tubers, or the bulbs that form beneath the soil of the plant. These tubers will each form an individual plant when divided and stored properly over the winter and planted again in the spring. If you are not one to start seedlings, you can purchase tubers and transplants at many nurseries and greenhouses for planting directly in your gardens and containers.

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Capitol Update

Skraba, Ely-R, represents District 3A for the state of Minnesota, an area that includes much of Lake County. Rep. Skraba sends his monthly updates from St. Paul specifically for the Lake County Press. I am very humbled to represent you, your family, and all of District 3A in the Minnesota House of Representatives. The pace in St. Paul has been fast and furious since the legislative session started in early January. I will try to touch on a few things but there is no way to share thoughts on all of these issues in such a short amount of time. When I ran for office last year, access to mental health care was an issue that constantly came up as a top priority for voters. There are many forms and different ways to support the needs of mental health and I have been working extremely hard to make sure these needs are being met for those in need. Discussions continue on a bonding bill, and I have been approached to support a bill that would provide funding for two buildings in the Northland. One building would be in Virginia and would serve school districts in St. Louis, Koochiching, Lake, and Cook County. The other in Cloquet would be serving Lake, St. Louis, Aitkin, and Carlton county’s school districts. Both of these projects help provide comprehensive special education and alternative learning services for northeastern Minnesota schools. They will work cooperatively with over 20 school districts to provide a safe and healthy place for students to learn behavior skills to successfully transition back to their home districts. Making sure those who are the most vulnerable get the care they need is a priority of mine.

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Applauding Nordean as Two Harbors city administrator

To the Editor, I am writing to applaud the choice of Patty Nordean for Two Harbors City Administrator. Most of the time I find myself in agreement with Katya and Mark Gordon, but not this time. It is great that there were multiple qualified candidates to choose from, and I am sure the question of whether to value local experience over education was not an easy one. Patty Nordean has shown over the years that she can deal with a wide range of situations, and her knowledge and experience will be highly valuable going forward. Promoting from within was a good move, and it is about time a woman takes a turn as Administrator. If there is a strong desire for the next City Administrator to have an advanced degree, maybe the City can do more to promote ongoing education among current employees.

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