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Grand Marais City Counselors listened to a presentation about the proposed merger of the Cook County/Grand Marais Economic Development Authority (EDA) and the Cook County Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) at the council’s April 12 meeting.
Coming before the council to present the concept was Steve Surbaugh, President of the EDA board and Mary Somnis, President of the HRA board.
“We’re here because we think it’s a great idea,” Surbaugh said of the possible merger.
Surbaugh pointed out that the EDA was created in 1988 by Minnesota Statute “for the purpose of holding title to the land for development of Superior National at Lutsen Golf Course.” That same stature allows the EDA to act as the HRA and Port Authority.
Following Cook County/Grand Marais EDA Director Beth Drost’s resignation in January 2023 to take a better job, calls came from citizens suggesting the merger, said Surbaugh. Drost’s resignation provided—an opportunity for both boards to evaluate and discuss the challenges facing each board.
Both Hale and Drost had spent time consulting each other on the same projects and often attended the same meetings. In addition, it was noted that grant organizations like DEED, the IRRRB, and the State of Minnesota prioritized applications demonstrating significant partnerships and financial support.
Surbaugh said. The two organizations’ work was inherently synergistic, and it became evident that exploring a merger with two professional employees working toward the same goals made sense.
The two boards met twice to discuss the possibility of the merger, and each board voted for the union. If the merger occurs, the organization would be called the Cook County/Grand Marais Economic Development Authority, which keeps in line with the State Statute.
Hale was hired in April 2022 to direct the newly formed Cook County HRA. He worked for the EDA and HRA in Duluth before he came to Cook County, so he has the skills and working knowledge to oversee the EDA.
Councilor Michael Garry said he was concerned that after years of talking and working to develop housing and the early success of Hale, the county and city could be “taking our eyes off the ball” when it came to developing housing with this venture.
Surbaugh replied that three studies were done over the years, each pointing to housing as the number one economic problem in the county and that if another person were hired to assist Hale, they could tackle the housing issues together.
Somnis said housing would remain the priority if the two entities joined. She also said the budgets would be combined and pointed out that future HRA and EDA levies could be rolled into the EDA budget. She said the county currently had designated $1.2 million to a future HRA housing project and added the IRRRB had set $500,000 for infrastructure for an HRA project, along with other available government grants accessible to the EDA that would help pay for future projects.
Grand Marais Mayor Tracy Benson was asked to comment. Benson said she had been to multiple meetings to discuss this potential development. First, she noted that the Superior National Golf Course was a huge part of the EDA work and wondered how that would affect Hale’s work on housing. She also posed the question, “What if Jason isn’t here? Would we still want this?” Next, she talked about the work with Minnesota Power on getting over 2,000 acres of land for development. That development would affect Lake and Cook County, but she noted it would take a lot of work but had a lot of potential for the area.
Councilor Ben Peters said he had difficulty seeing an upside to housing in this merger. “I don’t see how the EDA could benefit housing,” said Peters.
Grand Marais City Attorney Chris Hood (who appears on-screen remotely) was asked to comment on the possible merger. He answered that he had yet to review or analyze the potential for the two groups to join but pointed out that the city had just sold 12 acres of land to the HRA, so that contract would have to be reviewed before any merger. And he noted that EDA board appointments are for six years, so if the board was going to change, it would have to be through resignations or terms ending.
Jason Hale was in attendance, and he came forward to answer questions. He talked about being a liaison with the EDA in Duluth for a project in Lincoln Park. In his position, he worked with housing and businesses and got a feel for what needed to be done. Still, he admitted, “There is no silver bullet with a merger,” but having “a sweet of resources” and another person to work with and share some duties with would be helpful.
The council made no decisions, and the EDA and HRA will appear next at the county board to see what the commissioners think about dissolving the HRA and putting the EDA in charge of housing, Superior National Golf Course and the Grand Marais Business Park.
Somnis said if the commissioners decide against the proposal, she and Surbaugh wouldn’t have to come back in front of the city council for a decision.
Mark Morgen gave a presentation on Dark Skies. Morgen, a Starry Skies North-Cook County chapter member, asked Grand Marais Mayor Tracy Benson to offer a proclamation recognizing April 15-22 as International Dark Sky Week, which Mayor Benson did.
Morgen said that light pollution costs the U.S. about $3 billion per year to skyglow. The good news is you can turn lights off, and there is no clean-up, and the pollution ends. However, about 13 percent of residential electric use in the U.S. is for outdoor lighting, and about 35 percent of light is wasted because it needs to be targeted or directed where it needs to go. Some 600 million trees would have to be planted to offset the carbon emissions to produce electricity for wasted light.
Only two percent of the people on Earth live in Zone 1, which is an “excellent dark sky site.” Of the nine zones, most Americans live in zones 5-9 with dim night skies showing few stars.
Voyageur’s National Park was recently designated as an International Dark Sky Park and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area was recently selected as the largest Dark Sanctuary in the world.
A short discussion was had about modifying the city’s leash law regarding off-leash training activities.
An example was given, “Control of an animal by command is allowed if the animal is engaged in an activity that precludes it from accomplishing that activity if restrained, and the animal is in an area normally associated with that activity and the activity is conducted in a manner that minimizes impact with the general public.”
Based on that example, the recommendation, “using a definition to allow training activities on public land, is complex and remains open to interpretation. By allowing off-leash pets on private lands with the owner’s consent and by designating off-leash areas such as the dog park, this draft provides ample opportunities for off-leash starting in the city. Additional off-leash training opportunities exist outside of the city limits.
A revised draft of the city dog leash ordinance was presented but must be reviewed by the city attorney before the council votes.
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