There’s a place for everyone in Ranger Territory and a path for every student to succeed. We are a vast and diverse school district serving students from a dozen different cities and communities. Yet, we offer an amazing array of opportunities in both academics and activities that allows eve…
EDITOR’S NOTE: Letters will be accepted for the Open Forum for publication in the next available issue after receipt. Letters may be sent to Forest Lake Times, 146 N. Lake St., Suite 125, Forest Lake, or by e-mail to ryan.howard@ecm-inc.com. Letters should not exceed 250 words and must be si…
A recent report by Education Minnesota laid out teachers’ views of what it would take to fully fund public education. Gov. Tim Walz has put forward a school budget proposal that would provide significantly more funding for the next two years than provided in past years.
Several big questions come from the budget proposals in education that Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan presented on Feb. 19.
After buying a home on Bone Lake a few years ago, Tom Furey downloaded the Score Your Shore tool from the Minnesota DNR website and set to work to learn more about his new property. From conversations with the Comfort Lake – Forest Lake Watershed District, he already knew that water quality …
EDITOR’S NOTE: Letters will be accepted for the Open Forum for publication in the next available issue after receipt. Letters may be sent to Forest Lake Times, 146 N. Lake St., Suite 125, Forest Lake, or by e-mail to ryan.howard@ecm-inc.com. Letters should not exceed 250 words and must be si…
When you look back at your childhood and think about the teacher/staff members that made a difference in your life, what was it about that person that made the difference for you? Most of us know that we will not remember all the things that people taught us, but we will always remember how …
This is the time of the year that many people head south to escape the worst that Minnesota’s winter can throw at us. While Mexico, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic remain the most popular destinations for Minnesotans heading to the Caribbean, they are starting to suffer from the problems…
A 5 by 7 sign with orange block letters boldly proclaiming “TODAY IS THE DAY” has had a visible place in my office for many years and was the first thing I put on my mayor’s desk when I took office on Jan. 14th. It reminds me that despite lengthy timelines and daunting details, there is no t…
My video game fixation of late has firmly lodged its hooks in me, but that shouldn’t be a surprise. I’m in the center of the Venn diagram of its target audiences: ‘90s kids and parents of young children.
After her fourth major back surgery and enough chronic pain to fell an elephant, it would have been easy for my wife to succumb to the preferred route of treatment: prescription painkillers.
Flipped superheroine origin story is a flop
EDITOR’S NOTE: Letters will be accepted for the Open Forum for publication in the next available issue after receipt. Letters may be sent to Forest Lake Times, 146 N. Lake St., Suite 125, Forest Lake, or by e-mail to ryan.howard@ecm-inc.com. Letters should not exceed 250 words and must be si…
Seven decades ago, millions of soldiers returned home from World War II and ignited an American boom.
One month down, four to go at the State Capitol as the 2019 legislative session is now in full swing.
About six weeks ago, a friend from high school came to visit me. We grew up in Virginia (the state down south, not the city up north). When I took him out to the lake, his head nearly exploded when he saw all the pickup trucks driving on the ice, and the rows of fishing house set up in the d…
‘BlacKkKlansman’ is our clear favorite this year
All of us at Forest Lake Area Schools are tremendously grateful for the support that our community showed for students in passing November’s operating levy. We are currently in the process of setting our budget for next year in a way that makes the best use of those new dollars for the benef…
Do you know someone in the community who has gone out of their way to protect local lakes and waterways? Perhaps it is the neighbor who transformed their yard with native plants and raingardens to reduce runoff pollution. Maybe it is a business or organization working to prevent the spread o…
A major planning process is underway that could affect the community where you live in the seven-county metropolitan area.
This month, with the help of their parents and some exciting new tools, our students are selecting which high school classes to take in 2019-2020. The process for registration this year is unlike any I’ve seen before. Students are using a structured format to set goals for their lives and ma…
EDITOR’S NOTE: Letters will be accepted for the Open Forum for publication in the next available issue after receipt. Letters may be sent to Forest Lake Times, 146 N. Lake St., Suite 125, Forest Lake, or by e-mail to ryan.howard@ecm-inc.com. Letters should not exceed 250 words and must be si…
Alaska is the land of glaciers, mountains, and some of the most unique wildlife viewing in North America. Alaska is also a vast land, ranging from the temperate forests of the Inside Passage and Southeast to the icy vastness of the arctic. In between, small villages, glaciers, stunning natur…
Ever since Election Day, I’ve been thinking about our newly elected officials and considering they can be real people, too.
It’s probably too late to be talking about New Year’s resolutions. By the time this is published, January has ended, and many of you will either be well into your successful weight loss plans or organizing initiatives or stacks of self-help books. Others, however, may be a bit more like I am…
There are a lot of tragic situations around the world. Recently, I got to see one just down the road in Corpus Christi, Texas. Fourteen months ago, many homes were ruined by Hurricane Harvey. The initial mess was cleaned up, and tons of items from these homes, including walls, insulation a…
EDITOR’S NOTE: Letters will be accepted for the Open Forum for publication in the next available issue after receipt. Letters may be sent to Forest Lake Times, 146 N. Lake St., Suite 125, Forest Lake, or by e-mail to ryan.howard@ecm-inc.com. Letters should not exceed 250 words and must be si…
Now that Gov. Tim Walz and the 2019 Legislature have begun work, we believe their agenda must include correcting a serious breach of constitutional authority that includes an ill-conceived financial scheme. This 2018 legislation thwarts the will of Minnesota voters and compounds the costs of…
Last week, the razor company Gillette released a commercial that had a new twist on the “Best a Man Can Get” slogan by encouraging “The Best a Man Can Be.”
At the start of a new year, we have an opportunity to start fresh, set goals, and make plans. Turning over a new calendar page reminds us of the passage of time—a speeding train of moments rushing past in a kaleidoscope blur. For centuries, scholars and philosophers have considered this conc…
In October, we opined that Tim Walz had the ability to “pull us together and move Minnesota forward as a vibrant state, a place we are proud to call home.”
“The Kid Who Would Be King” has a fair amount going for it, most notably that it’s a not terrible movie coming out in January, a month usually reserved for studio dregs that aren’t going anywhere. It gets pretty good performances out of its child stars, its love of Great Britain’s countrysid…
Omnifest celebrates 20 years
In spite of the winter chill, we’re already gearing up at Columbus Elementary for those warm September days next fall when we’ll be welcoming our new class of kindergarten students. Every year, we plan and prepare so that each student has a great experience with their transition to kindergar…
The Forest Lake area is a truly unique place to live and call home. We have all of the benefits of rural Minnesota life – wide open spaces, access to a huge variety of outdoor activities and a lake around every corner. As a bonus, we are also part of a major metropolitan area with the busine…
EDITOR’S NOTE: Letters will be accepted for the Open Forum for publication in the next available issue after receipt. Letters may be sent to Forest Lake Times, 146 N. Lake St., Suite 125, Forest Lake, or by e-mail to ryan.howard@ecm-inc.com. Letters should not exceed 250 words and must be si…
The Minnesota Senate had two significant changes when the new legislative session began on Jan. 8. First, Senate President Michelle Fischbach, the first female president in Senate history, retired. She will be replaced by new Senator Jeff Howe.
Like most suburban communities, the city of Hugo uses nearly half of its municipal water supply to provide some form of irrigation. Unlike most communities, the city is telling residents in some neighborhoods to go ahead and keep the sprinklers running.
Last March, I recommended Ambrose Bierce’s “The Devil’s Dictionary” in the staff picks feature of The Times’ Arts & Entertainment section. In May, I provided some modern definitions in the same style for the letters A-H, and in September came those under headings I-O.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Letters will be accepted for the Open Forum for publication in the next available issue after receipt. Letters may be sent to Forest Lake Times, 146 N. Lake St., Suite 125, Forest Lake, or by e-mail to ryan.howard@ecm-inc.com. Letters should not exceed 250 words and must be si…
I don’t actually have a crystal ball, but here are a couple of travel trends I’m sure we’ll see in 2019.
Columbus begins the new year as a city poised for growth. After 20 years of planning, meeting and negotiating, an updated and appropriately-sized bridge and interchange at Highway 97 and I-35 should be completed by the winter of 2019. With the Anoka County Commissioners making this a priorit…
Happy Holy Days to you. May this Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year’s and the many other special occasions, religious or otherwise, be a special time that brings families together.
Have you ever had too much to drink and woke up with a headache? You probably thought, “I wish I hadn’t had that last drink.” In this holiday season, with its usual gatherings, it is wise to remember that along with the parties all too often comes tragedy. Each year, about 40,000 people are …
The Forest Lake area community provided a significant investment for our students last month by approving an increased operating levy for our schools. This levy increase will result in an additional $5.5 million per year for our school district, and the new funding represents more than extra…
The time of year is upon us all where it is a good practice to reflect and take inventory. As the leader of North Lakes Academy, this thought process has culminated in a single feeling: blessed.
As the administration of Gov. Tim Walz prepares to lead Minnesota for the next four years, the former congressman from Mankato will certainly face hurdles and challenges. One thing is certain for the new governor: Minnesota is much better off today than it was eight years ago.
In 1871, Elof and Eva Modig migrated to the United States from Sweden, purchased land near a small lake in southern Chisago County (at $1.25 an acre) and settled down to build a house and begin farming wheat. Over the next three decades, the couple had children and changed their last name fr…
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