The Lake Vermilion State Park is now official

[Lee Borgersen]

 6/10/10

 
The Lake Vermilion State Park is now official
$18 million purchase marks culmination of three-year effort to acquire land for the state's newest park
 
courtesy Minnesota DNRA visitor rests atop one of many spectacular overlooks in the new Lake Vermilion State Park. 
 
It’s official. The Lake Vermilion State Park is now a reality.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty and US Steel COO John Goodish signed the documents on Tuesday that officially transferred approximately 3,000 acres of mining company land to the state for the creation of Minnesota’s newest state park.

Pawlenty announced the acquisition in front of photos showing scenes of Lake Vermilion and an outline of the new park. He described the newly purchased land as a unique opportunity for the state, one that will give everyday Minnesotans a chance to visit a lake in northern Minnesota.

“People will see in the coming years and decades that this will be one of the most spectacular state parks in the United States of America.  We’re proud it’s in Minnesota,” Pawlenty said.

While it may well be months before the public gets its first real look at the park and its potential, the news was greeted with plenty of smiles from most local officials. “It’s a great win for the whole region and the 400,0000 visitors expected to visit the park each year,” said Troy Swanson, president of the Lake Vermilion Chamber of Commerce.

“I think it’s fantastic,” said Tower Mayor Steve Abrahamson. “I look forward to working with the state to fully utilize the park and hopefully reinvigorate tourism in our area.”

Linda Fryer, executive director of Ely’s Chamber of Commerce, said she expects Ely’s economy will be among the beneficiaries of the park. “The main impact is likely to be seen with our attractions, retail in general, and events. I think it’s going to have a definite impact on our economy.”

Tuesday’s closing marks the culmination of more than three years of effort to obtain the property for the creation of a major new state park along Lake Vermilion’s eastern shore. The park was first proposed by Gov. Tim Pawlenty back in July, 2007, and the Minnesota Legislature authorized $20 million in funding for the project in the 2008 legislative session. Negotiations over the purchase of the land broke down in mid 2008, but a new round of discussions in late 2009 led to an eventual agreement on a purchase price of $18 million.

That price tag is expected to go significantly higher before the park’s development is complete. Gov. Pawlenty and top officials with the Department of Natural Resources have indicated their plans to create a “park for the 21st century,” but that could push the final development price tag to $30 million or more, according to DNR estimates.

The new park, which is adjacent to the Soudan Underground Mine State Park, will take about six years to be complete, according to the DNR. In general, the plan includes road construction, buildings, sewage treatment, cross country ski trails, camp sites, rock climbing and a swimming beach, but many of the details remain to be worked out. According to the DNR’s Peter Hark, a new citizens advisory task force will be reconstituted in the next few weeks to begin development of a full park master plan. In the meantime, DNR officials were already beginning work to fully assess the park’s potential assets. In addition to more than five miles of undeveloped, pine-studded shoreline, the park’s rugged interior includes spectacular wetland complexes and dramatic overlooks of Lake Vermilion and surrounding forests from high rock outcrops.

Opening the park to the public

According to Hark, the DNR is planning a park groundbreaking or ribbon-cutting event at the park in the next few weeks, which will likely coincide with the first meeting of the citizens advisory task force.

While full development of the park is still several years away, state officials said they plan to provide some opportunities for visitors to see the park yet this year.

DNR Commissioner Mark Holsten said the department will offer public tours of the property this summer and try to make hiking paths available for use by the fall. Holsten said he hopes primitive camping will be allowed next spring.

Minnesota Public Radio’s Tom Scheck contributed reporting for this story.