Full Press

~ Brooks

It’s been a few months since I joined the Duluth News Tribune, and already I’ve built a cache of work I’m proud of.

One of the biggest and most difficult pieces of my tenure came in December. It starts like this:

There aren’t “whites only” signs in the windows, but some job seekers in Duluth say it sure seems that way.

“Because I am of black, African-American descent, it is not as easy to get into the medical industry even with all the experience I have,” said Erikka Thornton, who has been licensed in her field for nearly 20 years. “I live in a town where there are racists. It needs to be discussed. It’s not a secret.”

Indeed, the unemployment rate among Duluth’s minorities is staggering, even as jobs go unfilled and employers complain of a lack of applicants. This won’t be the last I’ll be writing about that.

Meanwhile, in a case of I-read-SEC-filings-so-you-don’t-have-to, I find Enbridge getting cautious about buying a stake in the Dakota Access pipeline. The massive pipeline company has a terminal in Superior, Wis., and as such will find its name in the News Tribune from time to time.

On a lighter note, Cirrus Aircraft delivered its first jet and opened a big new expansion at its Duluth headquarters.

Joe Whisenhunt, the first owner of a Cirrus Vision Jet, helps family members from the plane at Monday’s event to mark the delivery and the opening of Cirrus’ finishing center. Photo by Steve Kuchera.
Joe Whisenhunt, the first owner of a Cirrus Vision Jet, helps family members from the plane at Monday’s event to mark the delivery and the opening of Cirrus’ finishing center. Photo by Steve Kuchera.

Business is soaring at Cirrus, sure, but the needle is scratching at the end of the record at Vinyl Cave in Superior. It is a good time of year to be in fitness, however, and the lake culture business is booming.

Tl;dr? Just take a look at my 2017 economic outlook for the area.

Do be sure to check out my reporting on the rebirth of an infamous building through beer, a hard look at health insurance for business, the business and labor spending on the region’s political races and a visit, the day before the election, of Vice President-elect Mike Pence.

Finally, a big thank you to everyone I met at the Reynolds Center for Business Journalism at Arizona State University. I was a fellow at the Reynolds Week to start the year and learned a great deal among the company of great journalists and educators. Cheers, all!