North House Folk School has been negotiating with Harley and Shele Toftey, the owners of Dockside Fish Market, to see if the school can purchase the land and business from the Tofteys. Dockside is adjacent to the North House Folk School main campus. Current plans—if the sale goes through—would be to keep the restaurant open under a lease agreement.
Wanting to end the rumors, North House Folk School Executive Director Greg Wright said yes, indeed, the school is looking at buying the Dockside restaurant property from Harley and Shele Tofte.
“Last spring, Dockside Fish Market invited North House to sit down and discuss the possibility of a sale,” said Wright.
“Since we are still in conversation and still working to secure funding, I have limited information available,” he added.
Wright met with the Cook County Economic Development Authority on December 12 to share the news. He also attended the meeting to request a resolution from the EDA, confirming the EDA’s willingness to submit a grant to the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB) on behalf of North House’s attempt to purchase the property.
“One of the tremendous benefits of starting conversations last spring is that we’ve been able to start right away engaging two key challenges— making sure our community fish market and fishery both have a way forward even as Harley and Shele start planning for their future.”
When contacted, Shele Tofte said the intention is to leave Dockside open and have North House lease the business.
In a news release, North House board member Mike Prom was quoted saying, “Trying to imagine our community harbor without a fish market or fisherman seems almost impossible. Many businesses are connected to this important dimension of our community’s heritage, as are North House students, who place tremendous value on having Dockside nearby. An added benefit o keeping these local businesses active: property taxes will continue to be paid for the portion used for the restaurant and fishing.”
But as Wright said, securing funding for the purchase is central to North House’s efforts and directly connects to the possibilities of moving forward.
“While we are excited by our progress to date, ultimately it is important to underscore that we are still in conversation,” Wright said. “Having the EDA’s endorsement of the project and our IRRRB grant proposal keeps us moving forward. There are still key steps ahead that Dockside and North House hope to complete successfully. Our goal is to keep the community well informed as things move forward.”
North House is adjacent to Dockside. With the bustling Grand Marais recreation park to the west of the school’s main campus – which has been growing busier every year throughout its 20 years of operation – the school as it sits on the shore of Lake Superior can only expand to the east.
Last year North House purchased the old Forest Service building from Sue Hakes to use for office space. Half of that building, which is located directly across Highway 61 from North House, is rented to attorney Baiers Hereen.
Of the proposed acquisition of the Dockside property, Wright said the school is looking “five to ten years down the road” with its long-range planning.
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