Breaking News

Boards and Committee Openings

The City of Ely is calling for interested applicants to fill the following vacancies on the

Cemetery Committee
1- three year term
*resident or non-resident

Heritage Preservation Commission
1- three year term
*resident

Telecommunications Advisory Board
1- two year term
*subscriber/resident

Tree Board
3- three year terms
*resident or non-resident

REQUEST FOR QUOTES

The City of Ely is requesting sealed quotes for the excavation and construction of reinforced concrete foundations in Whiteside Park for the installation of two bronze canoe sculptures. These footings will be approximately 5’x7’x8’ and 4’x4’x7.5’. They will be installed in both ends of the center flower garden. Additional information can be requested from the Ely Clerk’s Office by emailing elyod@ely.mn.us or calling City Clerk-Treasurer Harold R. Langowski at 218-226-5474. Sealed quotes will be accepted until 4 pm on Friday May 13th.

Ely Echo
April 16, 2022
April 23, 2022

Regular Meeting Ely City Council – City Hall,
Council Chambers
April 5, 2022 - Minutes

CALL TO ORDER
The regular meeting of the Ely City Council was called to order by Mayor Skraba at 5:30pm in the Council Chambers.

PRESENT: Council Members A.Forsman, Kess, Debeltz, Callen, Campbell, and Mayor Skraba
ABSENT: Council Member Omerza

APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
Debeltz/Campbell moved to approve the minutes from the March 15, 2022 Public Hearing regarding Ordinance 354, March 15, 2022 Public Hearing regarding Ordinance 355, March 15, 2022 Public Hearing regarding EUC Rates, March 15, 2022 Regular Council Meeting, March 29, 2022 Special Council Meeting, and the March 29, 2022 Public Hearing regarding the 2022 Infrastructure Projects. Motion Carried 6-0-1 with Omerza Absent.

ADDITIONS OR OMISSIONS TO AGENDA: None

Public Hearing Minutes
April 5, 2022
City Hall, Council Chambers

Call To Order:
Mayor Skraba called the public hearing to order at 5:15pm at Ely City Hall Council Chambers.

PRESENT: Council members A.Forsman, Kess, Debeltz, Callen, Campbell and Mayor Skraba
ABSENT: Council Member Omerza

Purpose:
Ely City Council will hold a public hearing regarding Ordinance 353 2nd Series, Vacating a portion of City-Owned Property, Lockhart Street and Alley between Lockhart Street and Vermillion Street.

ORDINANCE NO. 353, 2nd Series

AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF ELY, MINNESOTA, ADDING TO THE ELY CITY CODE, CHAPTER 20, SECTION 20.13.25, ENTITLED VACATION OF A PORTION OF CITY-OWNED PROPERTY, LOCKHART STREET AND ALLEY BETWEEN LOCKHART STREET AND VERMILLION STREET

THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ELY DOES HEREBY ORDAIN:

SECTION 1. A new Section shall be added to Chapter 20 as Section 20.13.25, of the Ely City Code to read as follows:

SEC. 20.13.25 VACATION OF A PORTION OF CITY-OWNED PROPERTY. The City shall vacate the public right-of-ways described as:

that portion of Lockhart Street running directly adjacent to Lots 21 through 16 and Lots 73 through 71, Block 7, CHANDLER ADDITION TO ELY

AND

that portion of the unbuilt alleyway between Lockhart Street and Vermillion Street bounded by Lot 70 and bounded by Lots 71, 77, 78, 79, 80, and 81, Block 7, CHANDLER ADDITION TO ELY

Said parcel contains 0.35 acres.

by Tom Coombe
Brad Ashford represented Omaha, Neb., in the U.S. House of Representatives, but that didn’t stop him from being dubbed “Ely’s Second Congressman.”
Ashford, a longtime property owner on Burntside Lake and part-time Ely area summer resident, passed away Monday age 72.
His death, announced by family members Monday in Omaha, came only a few months after he was diagnosed with brain cancer.
And while Nebraska was his home, Ashford maintained a presence in Ely, where his family has owned property on Burntside for nearly a century.
During his two years in the U.S. House, he bonded with former U.S. Rep. Rick Nolan (D), who represented Ely and Minnesota’s Eighth District at the time.
Nolan spent time with Ashford on Burntside, including an overnight stay.
Wednesday, Nolan remembered Ashford fondly.
“We developed a good friendship and he was just a wonderfully nice man,” said Nolan.

To the Editor,
Will this time in history be an awakening? Will we continue to rely on a global economy without a back up plan? I would hope not.
With the latest petroleum issues that will drive inflation to all time highs and a possible recession, I wonder how the environmentalists feel about their efforts to stop drilling, pipelines, power lines, manufacturing, mining, logging, bridge building, highways, on and on.
We should be independent using our own resources so we can have security and move forward into the 21st century.
The recent decisions made, not by an educated evaluation, but only by a political agenda, to put the Twin Metals project on hold along with the moratorium of these 234,000 acres for 20 years is absurd.

We’ve been busy every weekend cleaning out a house after my mother passed away. Luckily the weather has cooperated with us, and we can look outside to see snow, rain or a mix of the two.
This has been a difficult task, not just because of the amount of things to go through but because, for me, this is the last house I will be cleaning out.
I remember traveling to Hazel Crest, Illinois when I was a teenager to clean out my grandparents’ house. This was a tough time to leave home since I had just gotten my driver’s license and there was a pretty girl who was willing to cruise Sheridan with me.
Instead I was the youngest one in a group of family members trying to decide what to do with furniture, photos, tools, dishes and a variety of other items.

by Tom Coombe
A surprisingly potent offense and some timely defense proved to be a winning combination for the Ely Timberwolves.
Ely scored six runs in the first inning and four times in the sixth en route to a 13-11 high school softball victory over Mt. Iron-Buhl.
Tuesday’s season-opening contest was played on artificial turf and marked the first time outside for the Wolves, who have been confined to their gymnasium for indoor workouts for several weeks.
Ely also gained some revenge against the Rangers, who beat the Wolves twice in three tries last year including in the Section 7A playoffs.
“It was kind of crazy,” said Ely Head Coach Cory Lassi. “I think we had 14 hits,and it was our first time seeing live pitching, hitting outside, and we jumped on them early. It was a great start to the season.”

The U.S. Forest Service is preparing to open fee campgrounds across the forest, but due to snow and cold temperatures lingering in northern Minnesota this spring, some campgrounds will open later than originally planned.
Forest Service staff anticipate that fee (both reservation and first come, first served) campgrounds will open between May 6 and May 12. Water services will be turned on when temperatures allow and may not be available on opening dates. Visitors with reservations prior to the new opening dates will be reimbursed.
Opening dates vary by campground and dates may be further delayed if cold temperatures and snow persist. Some Forest Service campgrounds are currently inaccessible due to snow levels.