The Gitchi Gami Bike Trail has been slowly making its way up the North Shore. On April 23, 2013, the county board approved a contract with the Arrowhead Regional Development Council (ARDC) to develop strategies for completion of the trail at a cost of $10,000.
Cook County will provide 1/3 of a $5,000 match ($1,667) for a grant of $5,000 from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Lake County and the Gitchi Gami Trail Association will provide the rest of the match.
Development of the trail began in the mid-1990s, and a plan to guide its development was adopted in 1999. About 25 miles have been constructed. The longest section is from Gooseberry Falls State Park to Beaver Bay, a stretch of 14.6 miles.
According to a document accompanying the contract with ARDC, “With nearly 20 years’ time since the Gitchi Gami Trail was envisioned and work began, it is time to look at accomplishments to date and lessons learned, re-energize the process and commitment to completing the trail, as well as revisit plans and priorities in light of change in programs, emphases, and funding opportunities.”
According to County Commissioner Bruce Martinson, a memorandum of understanding signed by multiple entities involved in planning the trail expired in 2006. Funding that was approved will be lost if it isn’t used, he said.
A stretch of trail west of the Lutsen Ski Hill Road will be completed this summer, and the stretch between Cutface Creek and Grand Marais is likely to be the next portion to be completed.
The trail will eventually be 86 miles long and will extend from Two Harbors to Grand Marais. According to Todd Campbell of the Minnesota Department of Transportation, the trail will be completed from Two Harbors to the Lutsen Ski Hill Road by the end of the summer. In other county news:
. The board approved four permits:
1) A conditional use permit for
Charles Corliss and Suzanne and John Davies for North Shore
Winery and Lutsen Brewing
Company on the Lutsen Ski Hill
Road. The business will include onsite sampling, purchase of takehome products, and, potentially, special events such as catered weddings. Plans were altered to decrease visibility from the road after Corliss asked for input from neighboring property owners.
Corliss will be purchasing the property from the Davies by this summer and will operate the business with Matt Kartes.
2) A conditional use permit for John Barton for a new building, a workshop with a bedroom and bathroom above it and a new septic system at his home in Hovland.
3) A conditional use permit for George and Cheryl Humphrey for an existing 42-acre gravel pit on Ball Club Lake Road. The permit will allow up to 10 acres to be open at one time. Restoration that was not completed before winter will be done as soon as the weather permits. “I have every intention of doing it right,” George told the board.
4) A two-year interim use permit for Thomas Week and Kendra Neudahl for use of a mobile home in Hovland. Conditions include installation of a septic system before resuming seasonal use of the mobile home and a requirement to remove the mobile home when a permanent house is built.
. The board approved job descriptions and pay scales for two new positions they had previously approved: an assessor’s technical clerk in the Assessor’s Office starting at $13.77/hour and a social services case aide in the Public Health & Human Services Department starting at $14.36/hour.
The assessor’s technical clerk position has been approved for five years with the possibility of extending through a sixth year. . The board approved hiring Jill Pederson as the assessor’s technical clerk. Seven people were interviewed for the job out of a field of 19 applicants. . With regret and appreciation, the board approved the retirement of Gary Blomberg from the Highway Department. He has worked fulltime for the county since 1980 and worked part-time or seasonally before that. The board also passed a motion authorizing advertising for Blomberg’s replacement. . An auction of the approximately 4.6- acre Tip of the Trail property on Lake Saganaga will take place in the courthouse commissioners’ room at 10 a.m. Monday, June 24.
Bids cannot be less than the appraised value of $350,000. The purchaser will have the option of paying over a period of 10 years with a 10 percent cash down payment and an initial interest rate of 10 percent.
More information is available in the Cook County Auditor-Treasurer’s Office.
Upcoming MnDOT projects
Todd Campbell of the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) met with the county board on April 23, 2013. He took note of safety suggestions made by the county board as well as Lutsen Supervisors Ginny Storlie and Tim Goettl and Skip Lamb of Schroeder and the Birch Grove Community Center. MnDOT continues to plan projects for improving the safety of Highway 61 but is limited by its funding. Here are some of the upcoming projects MnDOT has planned:
. 2013 – Resurfacing of I-35 in Carlton County.
. 2013 – Work on Highway 61 on the east end of Duluth to repair 2012 flood damage.
. 2013 – Upgrades to Baptism River Rest Area and Tettegouche State Park headquarters.
. 2013 – Highway 61 centerline rumble strips from Grand Marais to Grand Portage and resurfacing and
rumble strips near Silver Creek Tunnel and in Little Marais. The resurfacing in Little Marais will involve a
detour from Monday to Friday of one week. .
. 2014 – 18.9 miles of Highway 61 resurfacing from about one mile west of the Lutsen Ski Hill Road to about one mile east of the west outlet of CSAH 7. Will include reinforcing the south rock wall over Cascade River—using the historic rocks currently in place—so it could withstand the force of a truck crashing into it to prevent vehicles from falling into the river.
. 2015 – Replace culvert with bridge at Cut Face Creek six miles west of Grand Marais.
. 2016 – Replace bridge over Devil’s Track River four miles east of Grand Marais.
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