Should the county allow a resort to keep a boat at a public landing for occasional use by its guests? Cook County commissioners wrestled with this question posed by County Assessor Mary Black on Tuesday, May 18, 2010. It came up when a cabin owner complained about noise at Leo Lake landing that they attributed to people using boats left there by area businesses.
Up to four boats are docked there each summer—one by Nor’wester Lodge, two by Hungry Jack Lodge, and one by Windigo. Luana Brandt, who owns Nor’wester with her husband Carl, said rental boats have been there for 60 years. A public landing has not been there that long, but Brandt said the landing was public by 1965 when she moved to the Gunflint Trail.
Commissioner Jan Hall said that if they allow these businesses to keep boats there, other businesses might do the same thing on other county-owned public landings. Some county landings, such as the two on Saganaga, are managed by caretakers and require a usage fee that can be purchased for an entire season.
Forrest Parsons, owner of Hungry Jack Lodge, said moving boats in and out of there all summer would not only create a lot of extra work for his staff, it would create a lot of extra noise.
Luana Brandt said that one of their regular customers who uses one of Nor’wester’s boats at Leo Lake is a 78-year-old man who wants to teach his grandson how to fish for trout there this summer. He would not be able to do that as frequently if he had to rely on lodge staff to deliver a boat there each time.
With four resort boats at the landing, private boats still have enough room to get in and out, Parsons said. The landing can accommodate four to five boats comfortably, six at most, he said.
County Attorney Tim Scannell said the resorts are doing nothing illegal by leaving their boats there. The county could set a policy regarding use of public landings, such as requiring a permit and a fee that covered the cost of administration.
Commissioner Fritz Sobanja first said he didn’t think businesses should be allowed to leave their boats at public landings, but as the discussion progressed, he seemed to change his mind, saying it allows people opportunities to access good fishing spots. The businesses are providing a service to the public, he said.
Commissioner Jim Johnson said that leaving the same boats at one lake all summer would prevent the spread of invasive species from one lake to another.
“That’s a very good argument,” said Attorney Scannell.
The board discussed various approaches they could take, including the possibility of a lottery if a lot of businesses wanted to use the same landings. Commissioner Sobanja suggested that they stipulate that only established resort businesses could apply for a permit so that “every Tom, Dick, and Harry” doesn’t try to start boat rental businesses on county landings. He also suggested creating a permit that did not need to be renewed annually.
Luana Brandt said that other resorts do not try to compete for space at Leo Lake. They sometimes have guests who want to fish there and call Nor’wester asking for permission to use their boat if it’s not already reserved.
The board asked Assessor Black to draft a policy for their review.
TheLeo Lake landing is being reconstructed by the Minnesota Conservation Corps in consultation with the Cook County Soil & Water Conservation District. Assessor Black said native grasses and shrubs are being planted there to prevent erosion, although according to Conservation Technician Tristan Beaster, a greater percentage of runoff is entering the lake from neighboring private land.
Leave a Reply