Clyde opens in Duluth; Plante named Bulldogs assistant

Clyde Iron Works Restaurant, the latest phase of the new Clyde Park marketplace in Duluth's Lincoln Park neighborhood, opened in late May. The $9.6 million restaurant features a brewery and entertainment venue.

Alessandro Giuliani, the funder-developer, acquired the 12.2-acre Clyde Iron Works brownfield site in 2003 with a vision to preserve and adaptively reuse it to benefit the community. He began planning, seeking and investing capital to resolve environmental issues and redevelop the site.

Giuliani donated a portion of the site to the nonprofit Duluth Heritage Sports Center -- which after an extensive, all volunteer-driven successful fundraising effort, opened in 2008 a year-round 1,200-seat hockey arena and multi-use sports pavilion that converts from ice rink to turf.

The Duluth Heritage Sport Center also is home to the 12,000 square-foot Boys and Girls Club Dave Goldberg Family Branch, which provides a tutoring center, recreational space, arts and crafts for local boys and girls.

Duluth community leader Karl Spring interviewed Giuliani on Wednesday at Clyde Iron Works Restaurant:

SPORTS

Derek Plante has been named an assistant men's hockey coach at Minnesota Duluth.

"I can't say enough about how excited I am to be given this opportunity," Plante, a former Bulldogs All-American and eight-year National Hockey League centerman, said in a prepared statement . "I grew up in this area, got a chance to play for my favorite college and now I get to coach here — I couldn't be more thrilled. Coaching has always been in the back of my mind and my dad (longtime Hermantown High School Coach Bruce Plante) certainly had a lot of influence on me.

"This is what I wanted my next step to be in my hockey career and with the recent successes and a new rink on the immediate horizon, I think it's a great time to be involved with UMD hockey again."

Plante, 39, succeeds Steve Rohlik.

"Derek is a first-class person and a Bulldog through-and-through " said UMD coach Scott Sandelin. "He has played the game at the highest level, knows what it takes to win, and is a great addition to our program."