Barnum mayor reflects on vibrant time for city

When Barnum residents elected Dale Riihiluoma as mayor, running unopposed, in November, it was the culmination of decades of public service.

It was also something his wife of 47 years, the late Diane Riihiluoma, didn't want to see happen. Diane passed away in November 2021 after three decades of battling cancer. She tended to favor blending in over standing out.

"When Diane was still living she never wanted me to be mayor - it was too far out there," Dale said. "'You're not doing that,' she'd say. Sorry, dear."

Riihiluoma had been a longtime city councilor in Barnum, since 2005. He's embraced his new role - one he's added to a long list of hats he wears, including bingo caller, Knights of Columbus chapter president, Barnum Community Club board member, and club member of the Split Rock (Township) Star Club, one of the last community dance halls in the region.

"I don't care what community you live in, you need to invest in the community in some way," Riihiluoma said.

Riihiluoma met the newspaper last week at the Barnum city offices, which are part of a $2.1 million facility including a banquet hall and catering kitchen, as well as the city's municipal bar and liquor store. The building opened in late 2021, and has been in operation for 16 months. The still sparkling new facilities have proven to be a wise investment.

"The bar was doing horrible a few years ago," Riihiluoma said. "We were ready to close, it was that bad."

Instead, the city bonded $890,000 for the bar and liquor store - which is being paid off with profits - and $1.2 million for the offices and banquet hall, to be covered using savings as well as property taxes. Kraus-Anderson Construction of Duluth designed and built the facilities, creating a majestic bar and attractive wood ceilings and details throughout the buildings.

Touring the facility, Riihiluoma noted how luxury bingo parties have drawn as many as 200 people to the new hall. A recent Queen of Peace Catholic School fundraiser filled the room.

"It was packed in here," Riihiluoma said. "They're busing kids from Sturgeon Lake, Barnum and the Moose Lake area to Queen of Peace (in Cloquet). There's about 30 kids now."

Eric Pellinen is the manager of the bar and liquor store. He came to Barnum from a municipal liquor store in Edina, Minnesota. Even before the announcement of the new construction, Pellinen had begun to turn around the city's fortunes with his management expertise.

Pellinen said he appreciated working in the old bar and liquor store, which shared an entrance. Now, the facilities each have a proper entrance, and there's an expanded dining area in the bar, where bingo on Tuesdays and trivia on Thursdays are drawing regular crowds.

"We're noticing more people from out of town coming in," Pellinen said. "We're seeing a lot more patrons overall. There's more people willing to come into a bar that's got more space."

Riihiluoma said a lot of people have aided in the turnaround, but none more than Pellinen.

"He turned this place around," Riihiluoma said. "He knew how to order and had the managing experience to get the place turned around financially."

The city center isn't the only place that makes an impression, Riihiluoma said, for a city that's increased its population by 100 residents, to 620, since 2000.

"A lot of people don't realize all that we have in Barnum," Riihiluoma said. "They pass through, but don't know what's beyond the freeway when you come into town."

He cited numerous employers, including Ideal Homes, from which Riihiluoma bought his manufactured home located in the city. Riihiluoma also listed a school district that's well-supported - and where he substitute-taught for several years - and a city-owned campground on Bear Lake.

"It needs work; we need to spend some money down there," Riihiluoma said. "We did a parks plan several years ago. We have in place what we'd like to do if we could ever get the funding to do it."

Riihiluoma and his wife settled in Barnum after spending more than 20 years away from their native Kettle River, living and working in southern Minnesota in places such as Waseca, Montgomery and Waconia. At different turns, Riihiluoma was a public works director, and was employed at a municipal wastewater facility. When he came to Barnum, it was time to work on the other side of city government, he said.

"I had the experience for many years of working for councils," he said. "I knew the ins and outs of public works and how a city is run. I felt it was kind of my duty to fulfill that."

Arriving at Barnum as an outsider, it's taken him a while to get to know folks in the tightly knit town. He still doesn't know them all, he said, and there are new people arriving all the time.

"I feel more comfortable but there's still a lot of people I don't know," he said.

Citing newcomers, he hopes the city can work with developers to provide more housing.

"What we really need is more rentals," he said. "We have a lot of need for more rental property."

One relationship that's thriving in the city is the one between the Carlton County Fair board and city officials. Since the county fair opted to sell beer in recent years, the city has been handling liquor needs for the fair. In turn, the fairgrounds have been offered up for events such as the city's Spring Fever Days on the second weekend in June.

"Last year they put on a rodeo during Spring Fever Days and it was phenomenal," Riihiluoma said. "They had to turn people away."

But if events like the fair and Spring Fever Days are to have a future, they'll need more than Baby Boomers to help organize.

"It's hard out there," he said. "I don't care what organization it is, they're all my age that are keeping these things going."

Then the mayor of Barnum offered a challenge when he added: "Some of our younger folks need to step up."

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So why interview a relative?

It's generally considered bad form for a journalist to write about a relative. Conflict of interest is a real concern, so it's important to disclose I'm related to Barnum mayor Dale Riihiluoma, who is my mother's first cousin and, thus, my first cousin once removed.

It had been a long time since I'd seen Dale and I was curious how a relative of mine had found his way into public office. So, journalistic decorum aside, I wanted the interview and to tell his story.

Had there been a public controversy, I'd have demurred and let someone else cover it. But in this case, writing a feature story, I felt comfortable across the council table from Dale and was eager to catch up.

Riihiluoma is my mother's maiden name. I recall as a young boy my dad making my brother and me learn how to spell it. Dale shares many of the same features of his uncle, my late grandfather, including their impeccably cropped and light-colored hair, as well as their kind faces and generous demeanors. I noticed Dale was less nervous than my grandfather was.

Dale used to arrive at my grandparents' in Cloquet when I was visiting there as a boy. We lived close to my grandparents and my mom set my grandma's hair every few days, so we made frequent visits to their home along Highway 33. I knew Dale and Diane as friendly card-playing, mojakka-eating relatives.

Looking back, it seems like extended families were closer then. It might be just my perception, but there are a lot of Riihiluomas and Riihiluoma-adjacent relatives around Carlton County, many of whom I know only by name or not at all. My grandparents seemed to know ALL of the relatives, and had intimate understandings of their lives, struggles and joys.

Restoring our connection was part of why I was driven to interview Dale.

Near the end of our talk, he lamented that the Barnum city council doesn't receive a lot of media coverage, and I told him I'd keep an eye on the agendas.

Of course, when I noticed the city of Barnum website didn't have any agendas or minutes for 2023 updated on its site, I didn't let my relative off the hook. I let him know those ought to be posted.

"I will look into getting them on the website," he wrote back, thanking me.

- Brady Slater