Over 25 local businesses, nonprofits and individuals submitted creative ideas for the “Great Place Race.” Mini-grants were awarded to 16 recipients, including the Grand Marais Garden Club, which plans to use its money to reclaim and plant in the triangle between South of the Border Café and Buck’s Hardware.
Moving Matters and the Cook County Chamber of Commerce announced the winners of the “Great Place Race” this week. Over 25 local businesses, nonprofits, and individuals submitted creative ideas from across Cook County and Grand Portage. A total of $11,930 in grants will be awarded to 16 recipients to help create great places within our communities.
The Great Place Race is a friendly, local competition for mini-grants to use high impact, low cost ideas to create great places in our communities.
Moving Matters Coordinator Kristin DeArruda Wharton said, “A great place is inviting, beautiful, and catches the eye. It reflects the unique character and identity of the community. And a great place encourages people to slow down and spend time there.
“We know that people will be active where they have pleasant and safe places to do so. The Great Place Race is a really fun opportunity to put small seed grants into the hands of local organizations and businesses who are making our community more inviting and fun for people to get out and enjoy,” said DeArruda Wharton. “Not only will The Great Place Race funding showcase the region’s amenities, it will encourage residents to walk and bike more, which will improve health and thereby help to reduce the medical and financial costs associated with inactivity and poor health.”
Jim Boyd of the Cook County Chamber of Commerce added, “How delightful it is to see so much interest in making our Cook County community just a little more pleasant and fun. It shows just how beloved this ‘Great Place’ is, which, of course, is the whole point: We love it, so we take care of it, take time to enjoy it and welcome others to enjoy it, too. Aesthetics are not fluff; a beautiful place adds immeasurably to the quality of our lives and the quality of the experience we offer visitors. We hope this movement toward a more active and beautiful Cook County continues to grow and be embraced by all.”
The Great Place Race is sponsored by the Moving Matters project of the Sawtooth Mountain Clinic and the Cook County Chamber of Commerce. The Moving Matters project, with funding from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota’s Center for Prevention, is working to create safer and more accessible places to walk and bike in Cook County and Grand Portage.
Grant Recipients
. Art House B&B
Four little free libraries across
Cook County and Grand Portage
. Art ‘Round Town
Mounting of the student-created
glass mosaic mural on Johnson’s Grocery
. Birch Grove Foundation
Gathering area around hearth oven
with seating, garden, and information board
. Como Oil and Propane
Mural by local artists on propane
tank/dispenser at Grand Marais office
. Cook County Tennis Association
Bench seating at public tennis courts
in Grand Marais
. Cook County Whole Foods Co-op
Bench seating in front of Co-op
and picnic tables behind building
. Grand Portage Health Services
Athletic equipment for a borrowing bank
with Community Center
. Grand Marais Art Colony
Outdoor seating area, built and decorated by
local artists Peter Jenson and Kelly Dupre
. Grand Marais Garden Club
Reclaiming and planting of the triangle
off 1st Street East in Grand Marais
. Gunflint Lodge
Destination with seating and plantings
along South Gunflint Lake Road
. Joy Enterprises LLC
Installation of courtyard fence, bike rack,
and items for play (Hula Hoops and stilts)
. Northwoods Food Project
Expansion of children’s garden at
Cook County Community Center,
with straw bale gardening demonstration
. Schroeder Township
Wheelchair accessible picnic area at park
near Father Baraga Cross
. Town of Tofte
Bike racks and wheelchair accessible
picnic area at Tofte Town Park
. Trinity Lutheran Church
Bench under a canopy of pines,
addition of picnic area, and signage
for Trinity Trails and gathering area.
. WTIP Community Radio
‘Rest Stop’ off trail with
seating, plantings, and little free library
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