The Grand Marais Recreational Park Board met for the first time this year on Tuesday, Feb. 5 and touched on quite a few topics in about an hour and a half, with much of the discussion centered on the Gunflint Hills golf course.
New city councilor Craig Schulte was welcomed as the liaison between the city council and the park board.
First up was the ongoing search by the golf course work group to find a new Gunflint Hills golf course superintendent. “We really tried to cast a wide net to attract some really good applicants,” said Parks and Rec Director Dave Tersteeg.
Ads were placed throughout the region with the Golf Course Superintendent Associations of Minnesota and Wisconsin, online with Linkedin and Glass Door, as well as in the local newspaper, city websites, Facebook, and direct mailings to regional golf courses.
Of the eight applicants who applied, four were chosen to be interviewed. One of those dropped out and one received a job before the interviews began, said Tersteeg, leaving two well-qualified applicants to select from.
When talking with interested candidates, Tersteeg said two issues came up – the cost of housing and the remoteness of the area.
“It’s a real challenge to find the right fit for this position,” noted Tersteeg, adding that interviews were under way and a candidate will be offered the superintendent job in the near future.
The golf course work group also reviewed the marketing budget for the golf course and past ad buys.
“We’ve had a $3,400 line item for marketing,” Tersteeg said, “and most of that has been spent on joining golfing promotional associations like the 60 North Golf, which doesn’t leave a lot of marketing dollars left.”
While he has been short on dollars, Tersteeg said he has been “cross pollinating” marketing the golf course in his advertisements for the campground, marina and other park amenities.
VisitCookCounty Executive Director Linda Jurek is also on the golf course work group, and she has proposed creating a marketing golf umbrella with Superior National and Gunflint Hills.
Other ideas discussed included hosting events and golf tournaments as well as offering “stay and play” packages, and tying in Gunflint Hills signage along Highway 61.
“It became apparent that finding the right person or people to manage the course is key to succeeding in most of these marketing ideas,” said Tersteeg, adding “We need someone with new ideas, new energy.”
“I hope we can find a person with marketing experience who can add tournaments and events and isn’t just a turf manager,” said Sally Berg.
Golf course rates was discussed, with Tersteeg presenting some options for 2019 that were in line with charges in Virginia, Ely, Silver Bay and Two Harbors, which were offered for comparable rates.
The board agreed to look at those on their free time and come back at a future meeting to discuss and set the 2019 fees.
“We still need to set clubhouse hours,” added Tersteeg, noting the former golf course superintendent Mike Kunshier would open at 7 a.m. and close the clubhouse at 7 p.m.
Park report
Calling it the busiest month of the year for reservations, Tersteeg said January 2019 grossed $70,000 in reservation deposits, compared to $57,000 last year, a 23 percent increase over January 2018.
The online system went live at midnight and by 8 a.m. the next morning 120 people had booked reservations.
About 50 people stood in line on opening day, waiting for the office to open at 8 a.m. Tersteeg said all of them got the locations they wanted for the Fisherman’s Picnic, but next year the online system will be live at 8 a.m. so campers booking sites that way might get a site before someone in line.
When discussing the online system, Tersteeg told the board, “As a whole, online booking machine has continued to drive reservation numbers up. But given the recent crash of the online BWCA booking machine, we are working with our booking software group to make things go smoothly before we fully commit to going live at he opening bell next year.”
Sawtooth Mountain Bluffs Joint Powers Board
It took some persuasion because the duties and time needed to serve haven’t been determined, but Barb Backlund agreed to be the park board’s representative on the city/county joint powers board that will oversee management of the Sawtooth Bluffs regional park project.
Cook County Parks and Trails Director Lisa Kerr will schedule the new board, which will have one city councilor, one county commissioner, one county trails commission member, one citizen at large and a park board member.
The county and the city have a combined 640 acres that they are looking at developing for a variety of things that could include building trails for mountain biking, hiking, installing a disc golf area, putting in a dog park, and building a trail hub with approximately 30 camping spots.
Once the joint powers board has been assembled the park’s master plan will be submitted to the Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trail Commission for the Sawtooth bluff project. Tersteeg said he thinks the process will take time to develop, with phase 1 the development of the trailhead and trail hub road.
Parkside water access project
With $2 million in municipal bonding approved for the Parkside water access project last spring, Tersteeg said the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) needs to enter a lease with the city for the land that will be re-developed. He and Grand Marais city manager Mike Roth drove to Two Harbors and met with DNR officials on Dec. 20 to discuss the lease. He also said the Minnesota Land Trust would be involved in reviewing the lease, which is now underway.
“The DNR will be the project manager for the Parkside water access project. This year is the planning and permitting phase, with work to take place in 2020.”
When the work is under way, Tersteeg said the public dock at the Coast Guard station would be much busier, and the little dock inside the park marina would also have to be brought up to snuff so boaters too, could use it.
Special Event applications approved:
• The 29th annual Grand Marais Arts Festival Art Sale and Celebration will take place Friday, July 12 through Sunday, July 14 with an estimated 14,000 people attending. The Grand Marais Art Colony sponsors the event.
• Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply is once again hosting the North Shore Water Festival, featuring paddleboard, canoe and kayak demonstrations, as well as a plethora of new paddling gear. The festival will be held July 19-21 on the Harbor Park beach or the East Bay beach if the weather dictates.
• The Stars of the North music festival will be held July 25-28 at Harbor Park, but because there were some questions about the permit, the park board will get some more information and review the permit again at their next meeting. The festival showcases local musical talent as well as raises funds so that kids can receive music lessons.
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