News

It may be early but it’s likely taxpayers in the Town of Morse will not see a levy increase in 2020.
The Morse board met Tuesday night and took a first look at the proposed budget for 2020.
Both treasurer Mary Ann Lekatz and supervisor Bob Berrini said a levy increase wouldn’t be needed.
The board will make its recommendation to the annual meeting in March where voters will decide whether or not to raise taxes in 2020.
When the meeting started a moment of silence was held for Tom Rukavina who most recently served as the St. Louis County Commissioner for the Ely area.
Rukavina worked hard to get an agreement on annexation between Morse and the city of Ely. That tentative agreement is now in the hands of the city council.
The city is expected to take action on Morse’s counter proposal at Tuesday’s council meeting.
In other business the board:

by Tom Coombe -

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COMPLETE WITH A TORCH LIGHTING CEREMONY, Ely’s youth ski league opened at Hidden Valley with Olympic-style fanfare. Area resident Elton Brown, who has skied in nearly 30 American Birkebeiner races, lit the torch that marked the start of the Ely chapter of the 2019 Minnesota Youth Ski League.

FILM CREW IN ELY - Representatives of Northland Films, which produced the hit “Pond Hockey” and other films, were in Ely last week shooting footage of Ely’s high school hockey team for a potential film about the hockey program and a small community. Tommy Haines was among those at the Ely Arena Jan. 4 to get footage of the Wolves’ game with International Falls. Photo by Finn Bay Photography.

WAITING ON A FRIEND? Photo by Heidi Pinkerton of Root River Photography: “Head is bobbing back and forth to WELY’s polka music and I’m sipping some Starbucks as I drive down the road in search of wildlife. I glance over and see a deer standing in the river. Fifteen years of photographing wildlife has me turn around in a heartbeat. I know for a fact that a deer ixs not just going to stand in icy cold water for no reason at all. And even though I didn’t make out the wolf on the first pass, it was certainly there when I pressed the shutter! As I walked back to the car to get my long lens, the wolf slipped away. The deer stood there for another hour before making her way back to shore. Needless to say, I really didn’t need that caffeine after all.”

TEARING UP THE TRACK on Shagawa Lake after the KCPRO East races were moved from Fall Lake last Saturday were these youth snowmobile racers. Photo by Eric Sherman.

Tom Rukavina, an Iron Range political icon who represented the Ely area on the St. Louis County Board the last four years, died Monday in Minneapolis after a brief battle with leukemia. He was 68.

While standing less than five-and-a-half feet tall, Rukavina was remembered Monday as a political giant who pulled no punches.

The Virginia native represented his hometown in the Minnesota legislature for 26 years, and was known for his acerbic wit and passionate support for his constituents and northeastern Minnesota.

"Minnesota and the Iron Range have lost a true champion for workers,” U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar said in a statement released a new hours after Rukvaina's death. “Tom Rukavina understood the dignity of hard work, and was a force for Iron Range workers and their families. He spent nearly three decades in elected office on the Range fighting for miners and bringing good-paying union jobs to the region.”

by Tom Coombe -

A major infusion of IRRRB funds will help build ATV trails in northeast Minnesota.
The Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board had budgeted $3 million for trails projects but that amount had to be increased to $3.4 million to fund all of the approved projects.
Governor Mark Dayton signed off on the budget increase and 11 projects were approved.
Included in those were $2.3 million for ATV trails in Ely, Crane Lake and the Quad Cities.
The breakdown for those projects is as follows:
• Voyageur Country ATV club: Vermilion River Bridge: $1,176,400
• Prospector Loop: trails connecting cities, including 11 bridges: $972,600
• Quad Cities ATV Club, trail design/development/town connectors: $166,900