Popular Duluth Mayor Roger Reinert on the possibility of reopening Lester Park Golf Course this spring – "I am finally getting a chance to come up for air after a month in office, and move from leadership staff changes and a long list of items functionally on pause since the election, to focus on issues I consider a priority and where I want us to lead out. Lester is high on that list.
The unusually warm weather has folks itching to get out and do many things – golf among them.
My pledge was never to reopen Lester, but it was to restart the conversation and re-examine the possibility. To that end, I am working with a couple folks that I hope will chair a working group. One has a deep history with the Friends of Duluth Public Golf, and the other is not connected to golf at all, but is active in winter recreational activities. The working group will be charged with looking at:
- Year-round use of the Lester space
- Potential non-profit management structure for both Lester and Enger
I have a running list of folks who have expressed interest in that conversation, and I intend to invite them to the table once we launch this effort."
My legendary curling buddy John Shuster on skipping his Olympic gold medal-winning team to the 2024 U.S. National men's championship in New Jersey last week – "It was week to remember, that’s for sure. I cannot express enough how lucky I am to go to battle with the teammates I am blessed with. I am so proud of our resilience and performance this past week against the incredible teams competing was simply humbling. I never dreamt I’d have an opportunity to play in, let alone win 10 National Men’s Championships. I want to thank our families (especially my crazy wife and kids who came back to be my rocks in the stands for the Finals after going home for a very important swim meet) and fans, both near and far, for their unwavering support as usual. We are beyond blessed to have you all in our corner. The staff of USA Curling this week was unmatched. The event you all put on in what had to have been an incredibly new and challenging place was second to none. That being said, the American Dream mall is a top-notch place with top-notch people working there. I cannot thank them enough for the care they took of all of us curlers, our families and curling fans. Finally, I want to thank Curling Stadium for your coverage of Nationals this year. The importance of showing every game on every sheet allows the incredible curling our country has to be enjoyed by all, regardless of the ability to travel. Seriously, it’s a game changer. I’m excited to dawn the Red, White and Blue once again and am excited about what lies ahead in Switzerland."
