Being the only bidder at an auction is a pretty nice situation to be in. Michael Drilling didn’t have too much to worry about at the county’s auction of the approximately 4½-acre Tip-ofthe Trail property on Saganaga Lake on June 24, 2013, because he was the only bidder.
One other person identified himself as a potential bidder but could not bid because he did not have the required bid bond or equivalent of 5 percent of the appraised value.
The property was a tax-forfeited parcel.
Drilling won with the minimum bid of $350,000, the appraised value of the property. Cook County Assessor Betty Schultz said the appraiser didn’t really have any good comparables to base the appraisal on. The assessed value is $537,400 — $294,500 for the two buildings and $242,900 for the land. The parcel is zoned lakeshore residential.
Drilling told the Cook County News- Herald after the auction that he would be living on the property. He is the outfitting manager at Voyageur Canoe Outfitters and said he has been coming to or living in Cook County for many years. He said the house has not been lived in for 15 years.
The county recently filled in three septic systems that had been condemned, so Drilling will have to have an acceptable form of septic treatment before he can live on the property. Regarding the condemned septic systems, Michael Valentini of the Gunflint Trail joked just before the auction began, “You do know that Jimmy Hoffa is buried in one of those septics….”
Changes in Terrace Point plan
At the June 25 county board meeting, the board approved a request by Merritt Johnson of Wintertree Inc. for an amendment to a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) at Terrace Point off Highway 61 by Cutface Creek allowing for a 22-unit commercial PUD (planned unit development) and three single-family homes on individual parcels. The amendment is the latest in a series of changes in plans to develop the property.
According to Planning & Zoning Administrator Bill Lane, the construction of 10 single-family homes was started in 1987 as part of an initial development plan that included condominium units, a lodge, and a restaurant. In 2004, the board approved a CUP for construction of a 40-unit PUD. Sixteen condo units have been completed, and a foundation with the potential for six additional units has been constructed.
The amended CUP allows for three residential parcels in place of the lodge/ restaurant complex.
A report from Administrator Lane states that Johnson’s attorney, Dick Swanson, said, “There have been Herculean efforts to make this development work, and this represents a change in approach.” According to the report, “…The modifications are occurring in response to a bleak economic prognosis and a desire by Wintertree to remove itself from the land development process.”
Lane said the three single-family home parcels and the land on which the uncompleted condominium unit sits are currently on the market.
Grant and loan for Superior National
The board approved an agreement with the Cook County/Grand Marais Economic Development Authority (EDA) for a grant of $3.1 million for renovation of the Superior National at Lutsen Golf Course and a loan of $300,000 for up to 60 days at 3 percent annual interest to pay bills related to the project.
The loan will be repaid by a $300,000 grant from the Iron Range Resource and Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB), which has been approved.
The EDA has applied to the IRRRB for another $300,000 next year.
The $3.1 million from the county will come from 1 percent recreation and infrastructure sales tax revenue. Also funding the $4.8 million project is $1.1 million in revenue bonds. Bonding will be increased by $300,000 if the second IRRRB grant does not come through.
The project includes the renovation of the nine-hole River course, to be started in August and completed by snowfall, and the nine-hole Canyon course, to be done next year. The purchase of four acres of land from Lutsen Mountains is part of the project.
Broadband equipment building
Northeast Service Cooperative (NESC), bringing broadband up the North Shore through a federal grant, will likely be locating an equipment building on Recycling Center property. The board approved forming a committee of department heads along with Commissioner Bruce Martinson to negotiate a lease for use of the land if possible. NESC has asked the county to consider selling the piece of land on which the building would be located, but the board preferred to keep the land and lease it.
Bally Blacksmith Shop agreement
The board approved a letter of agreement promising that the county and the Cook County Historical Society (CCHS) would remain in partnership for 20 years to maintain the Bill Bally Blacksmith Shop in a way that will protect its eligibility for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Cook County Historical Society requested a partnership with Cook County in order to qualify for the Minnesota Historical Society grant of $130,000 that allowed the purchase of the building. When it entered the partnership with the local historical society, the county planned to stay in it for five years and then turn the building over to the society.
The Minnesota Historical Society later notified the Cook County Historical Society that they had not realized previously that Cook County and CCHS would be required to sign a letter of agreement which the Minnesota Historical Society supplied and which states that the two entities would remain in partnership for 20 years.
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