Pine City residents Michaela Engh and Allie Gosen have their sights set on a big year ahead for The Harlow Pennies, their folk-leaning musical duo. "I've had a heart-to-heart with Michaela, and I said 2026 is going to be the year of The Harlow Pennies," Gosen said. "So we've got a lot of stuff coming up." Those plans include releasing a live album after recording a mini-session at The Gothic Farmstead in Pine City. "That way, everyone has something to listen to while we're wo

Pine City Public Schools paraprofessionals represented by AFSCME Council 65 are continuing to call for "transparency, consistency, and adherence to district policy regarding starting wages for newly hired employees," according to a news release issued on Nov. 20. According to the release, paraprofessionals have been expressing concerns about new hires being placed at "unusually high" steps on the salary schedule for several months. "We have no interest in preventing the distr

A winter storm warning will take effect between 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 25 and 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 26 in Pine County. According to the National Weather Service, heavy snow is expected, with total accumulations between 4 and 9 inches. Hazardous conditions could impact the Wednesday morning and evening commutes. Visit the WCMP Facebook page for updates on delays and cancellations.

Dihanna Fedder, a retired member of the Pine City Public Schools staff after 39 years with the district, recalls a trip to Alexandria inspiring the Dragon Food Shelf project in Pine City. During a facility tour, a guide opened a door to show the Pine City contingent a food pantry, which caught Fedder off guard. "I was just shocked to see one inside a school," Fedder said. On the way back from Alexandria, Fedder recalls thinking "we should do that." She explained that through

The Pine Center For the Arts is partnering with Three Twenty Brewing for an Original Songwriters Showcase on Saturday, spotlighting five musicians from across Minnesota. Adam Moe, Austin Green, Brooke Anderson, Doyle Turner, and Brent Fuqua will take their talents to the stage starting at 6 p.m. on Saturday. Tickets for the showcase are $25, and will raise funds for the art center. WCMP news director Erik van Rheenen caught up with each of the songwriters ahead of Saturday's

The Minnesota Department of Transportation has completed work on a multi-year project on I-35 in Hinckley. According to a MnDOT press release on Wednesday morning, the project replaced the northbound and southbound Grindstone River Bridge and the bridges over the BNSF railroad located just over a mile north of the Highway 48 junction. The work also resurfaced just over 3 miles of I-35, and the Highway 48 on- and off-ramps. According to the project website, the work cost $25.6

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is cautioning residents of east-central Minnesota that fire danger is predicted to increase over the next few days. As fall continues, dry vegetation and falling leaves increase, which help fuel wildfires. Information officer Philip Weyhe said the DNR has responded to over 20 fires during the last week. "Wildfires can start and spread quickly, especially in dry, windy conditions," Weyhe said in an email. According to DNR wildfire

The Pine County Sheriff's Office rescued a driver from a vehicle submerged in a creek on Saturday, Nov. 8. According to the citation summary, the incident occurred just before 9:30 p.m. near the intersection of Beroun Crossing Road and Contrast Road. On Thursday, Sheriff Jeff Nelson explained that dispatch received an auto-call from a vehicle with a crash detection triggered. "The female driver was reporting that the water was up over her lap," Nelson said. "She couldn't get

The Pine City Council voted to move forward with applying for grant funding for a Housing & Redevelopment Authority project to rehabilitate the Hillside Court Apartments property at last week's meeting. "As you're well aware, that property, Hillside Court, has some foundation issues," said economic development coordinator Lezlie Sauter. Sauter explained that the HRA was notified that it was not awarded grant funding through the Publicly Owned Housing Program at the end of Sep

With the page slowly turning on 2025, East Central Regional Library executive director Carla Lydon was an open book in sharing highlights and challenges from the library system in an interview last week. "It's been quite a year," said Lydon, who has been in the position since 2017. Lydon said ECRL started 2025 with a new strategic plan, and progress on those goals included a growing readers program piloted by the Mora Public Library. The program connects a student in grades 1

A wildfire reported in the Nemadji State Forest on Friday morning has been 75% contained, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. According to Minnesota Interagency Fire Center public information officer Leanne Langeberg, the Rash Road Fire was detected west of McDermott Creek on Nov. 7. Langeberg said the fire is burning in a "mix of hardwood trees and downed leaf litter." Over the weekend, fire crews mapped the blaze at 120 acres and have contained 75% o

Work on Hinckley's I-35 bridge replacement project is nearing completion. According to the MnDOT project website, lane closures will be removed at noon on Friday, Nov. 7. A northbound lane closure will be put back in place on Monday, Nov. 10. That work is expected to last through the evening of Nov. 14. All work on the project, which carries a $25.6 million price tag, is expected to be complete by the end of November.

The Chisago Lakes school board voted to hold a special referendum election on Feb. 10 at a meeting on Oct. 23. The referendum ballot will feature two questions. The first seeks $48.1 million for acquisition and betterment of school sites and facilities, including safety and security improvements at the primary school, middle school, high school, and Taylors Falls elementary school. The second question, which is contingent on the first question passing, seeks $7,505,000 for pr

Here are the preliminary results from local elections. Cambridge-Isanti School District referendum Question 1: 4,481 voted no (59.6%), 3,038 voted yes (40.4%). Cambridge: 2,005 voted no, 1,720 voted yes. Isanti: 2,476 voted no, 1,318 voted yes. Question 2: 4,931 voted no (65.73%), 2,571 voted yes (34.27%) Cambridge: 2,253 voted no, 1,462 voted yes. Isanti: 2,678 voted no, 1,109 voted yes. Willow River School District referendum 305 voted no, 190 voted yes. Princeton Public Sc

The Pine County Board voted to censure commissioner J.J. Waldhalm and remove him from out-of-county committee assignments until he completes commissioner training at Tuesday's meeting. According to attorney Laura Kingsbeck, who conducted the investigation, former county administrator David Minke reached out to the law firm of Ratwik, Roszak, and Maloney in July. Kingsbeck said two county employees brought forward claims regarding Waldhalm's conduct. "In particular, the claims

The Burnett County Sheriff's Office is investigating a case where a vehicle struck a pedestrian in the town of Lincoln in the early hours of Sunday, Nov. 2. According to a news release from the Burnett County Sheriff's Office, dispatch received a call from a person reporting he had struck a pedestrian near the intersection of County Highway FF and Perida Road just after 1 a.m. Law enforcement, EMS, and fire personnel were dispatched to the site of the incident. The pedestrian

New A Place For You executive director Anna Reiser has hit the ground running in the position. "I'm on week six, and learning as much as I possibly can about our programming there, so it's been an adventure," Reiser said. Opening in 2012, A Place For You is a transitional homeless shelter for single adults, serving six counties: Pine, Kanabec, Isanti, Chisago, Mille Lacs, and Carlton. "We are able to have people stay up to 90 days," said administrative assistant Kaitlyn Matti

A fire extinguished at a Grantsburg manufacturer in the early hours of Monday morning was determined to be suspicious in nature by authorities. According to a Grantsburg Police Department news release, a fire alarm at McNally Industries, located at 340 West Benson Avenue, was reported to the Burnett County dispatch center at about 3:25 a.m. The Grantsburg Fire Department responded to the scene and determined the fire was suspicious in nature. No employees were at the scene at

An investigation into allegations that Pine County Commissioner J.J. Waldhalm "used his position as an elected official to exert influence inappropriately" found the complaints were substantiated. According to information from the packet for the county board's upcoming Nov. 4 meeting, former administrator David Minke authorized an investigation earlier this spring/summer after receiving complaints regarding Waldhalm. The packet states that the investigation — which was conduc

Kara Troiber — founder of Caught in the Veil Paranormal (CITV-P), a Pine City-based paranormal investigations team — didn't have to go looking for the paranormal in her youth. Instead, the paranormal found her. "I had a lot of experiences as a kid, and growing up, and then eventually, just decided it would be fun to go check it out," Troiber said. Troiber's great-grandparents bought the property of the old, abandoned location of Bradford in Isanti County, when the site still