A student cell phone use issue that led to the theft of a personal item from the office of a dean at Forest Lake High School is in the process of being resolved.

Forest Lake police are investigating the issue from Thursday, April 24 when a dean reported the theft of a 20-ounce personalized Coke bottle that contained a photo of the dean and the dean’s dog.

Forest Lake could be home for a second public high school as early as 2010

North Lakes Academy, a public charter middle school serving students in grades 5-9, has been granted state approval to expand its format for a full high school offering.

Ralph Plaisted has no problem with the cold and snow of a Minnesota winter —  as long as he is not the one shoveling the snow.

Surviving a Minnesota winter is a snap for the 80-year-old Linwood Township man. For a fellow who made history by traveling to the North Pole, a Minnesota winter is nothing.

As a U.S. Air Force weather plane flies above and takes readings, the Plaisted Polar Expedition's arrival at the North Pole on April 20, 1968 was confirmed. Today, Ralph Plaisted is retired, living in Linwood and working on film and book projects of the expedition of 40 years ago.

(Photo Courtesy of Ralph Plaisted) 

A state fire marshal is expected in Forest Lake on Thursday to assist Forest Lake Fire & Rescue and the Forest Lake Police Department with the investigation of an early morning house fire at 8525 North Shore Trail N. The fire department was called at 4 a.m. by a neighbor who saw flames shooting through the roof, said Fire Chief Gary Sigfrinius. The fire chief said the cause was undetermined but labeled the incident as "suspicious." Sigfrinius said the home was a rental property but  he was unsure if the dwelling was occupied in recent days. The chief, far right, surveys the damage on Thursday morning with two workers from Xcel Energy. The home was a total loss, he said. Quick action by Forest Lake firefighters saved the home to the west, although the dwelling received extensive siding damage.

(Photo By Cliff Buchan) 

Each morning before the sun peaks above the trees that helped name Autumnwood Farm, the Pat Daninger family is busy milking cows. It’s a morning and evening tradition for dairy farmers everywhere.

During the past two months, the tradition has expanded for the Forest Lake farm family. Every Monday and Tuesday, the Daningers and a team of volunteers bottle some 300-400 gallons of milk that comes direct from the farm’s herd of Holstein cows.

Autumnwood Farm creamery manager Jim Riter fills crates with half-gallon bottles of skim milk during Monday's production. 400 gallons of milk were bottled on the new Forest Lake operation.

(Photo By Cliff Buchan) 

It took 70-degree days on Sunday and Monday and overnight rain Monday to make for ice out conditions on the Forest Lake Chain. Lake spotter Corbett Johnson reported that the final thin layer of ice on Second Lake cleared on Tuesday afternoon. Strong winds last week forced some of the ice to the shore along North Shore Drive on Friday. Peg Kolnberger’s beach received some damage. Balmy conditions on Monday may have been the final blow. Heidi Richey of Cumberland, WI, used a bench at Lakeside Memorial Park in downtown Forest Lake for some reading Monday while she waited for her son to complete a class at Crossroads Church. Only a thin patch of ice remained. This year’s ice out was 23 days later than in 2007 when the lake ice cleared on March 31.

(Photo By Cliff Buchan)