REGIONAL— The future of the proposed Lake Vermilion Trail is likely to hinge on a decision that could be made as early as next week. After more than a decade of effort but limited progress, the Friends of the Lake Vermilion Trail board is asking the St. Louis and Lake Counties Regional Rail Authority to assume responsibility for future planning and construction of the nearly 40-mile-long trail.
It may be the last best hope for the trail, but supporters say it’s not the end of the road.
“This isn’t people throwing their hands up,” said Tim Johnson, of Cook, who chairs the Friends of the Lake Vermilion Trail board, which manages the organization as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
“The consensus of the group is that this makes sense,” said Johnson. “It’s about who has the ability to get this done.”
Johnson said the rail authority, which has overseen the planning, design, construction, and management of the 132-mile-long Mesabi Trail, has demonstrated its ability to undertake a significant and sustained project in the region. Members of Johnson’s board recently met with Mesabi Trail Director Bob Manzoline and deputy director Sarah Ciochetti to discuss the possibility of assuming authority for trail development. “They haven’t agreed to it, but they seem positive,” said Johnson. “They’ve been very supportive of our efforts.”
As envisioned by supporters, the Vermilion Trail could become a spur or extension of the Mesabi Trail, which would intersect in Tower, which is supposed to be the eastern terminus of the Vermilion Trail.
Johnson said his organization would be willing to assume the maintenance responsibility for the trail once completed. “At this point, we wish we had some trail to maintain,” he said.
Whether that’s in the cards anytime soon is likely to hinge on a decision by the rail authority board, which Manzoline said is scheduled to meet next Wednesday, Nov. 1. The five-member board is chaired by St. Louis County Commissioner Keith Nelson and includes fellow commissioners Mike Jugovich and Patrick Boyle, along with Lake County commissioners Rick Goutermont and Jeremy Hurd.
Manzoline was non-committal on the idea of assuming authority for advancing the Lake Vermilion Trail, noting that the Mesabi Trail still has a few missing segments, including the segment from Wahlsten Rd. to Tower, to complete along with several spur requests already in line. That includes an extension from Aurora to Hoyt Lakes, from Ely to Winton, and a significantly longer requested extension from Grand Rapids to Deer River.
Manzoline said the Vermilion Trail would also require passage across tribal lands, which was an issue they didn’t have to address during planning for the Mesabi Trail. “The biggest unknown is the tribal lands. How do we expend state dollars there?” he questioned.
The request to the rail authority comes at a time when at least one township that had originally opted to join the joint powers board that was supposed to oversee the project has backed away from the project. Officials in Greenwood Township, which would be home to a significant portion of the trail if built, ended their participation in the effort earlier this month out of concern for the lack of visible progress.
The effort has had some success fundraising and has undertaken pre-engineering and design work for a segment of the trail from Tower to the Y Store. The group has also flagged a considerable amount of the proposed route. “We’ve put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears into it,” said Johnson.
But the trail faces a number of challenges, including the significant amount of private land as well as wetlands along the south side of Lake Vermilion. “It’s a million puzzle pieces and you’re not sure how they all fit together,” Johnson added. While a generally popular idea, Johnson noted that the project has faced some opposition from landowners at various points along the route, which has further complicated the process. That’s something that the Mesabi Trail has managed to work around, although it’s often been a painfully slow process, even with their experience and access to funding.
As a long standing trail-building effort with a track record, the Mesabi Trail has typically been able to access trail grants as the various segments have been ready for construction. As a new trail venture, without a track record or significant matching funds, the Vermilion Trail hasn’t always been able to tap the trail dollars it needs to advance the project. Were the trail to reach the construction phase, the funding requirements would only escalate. While construction costs vary considerably depending on the terrain, the construction of paved trails through the woods are currently running about $300,000 per mile, said Manzoline. At nearly 40 miles, that could put the total construction cost of the trail at about $12 million in today’s money.
Johnson sees that as a worthwhile investment in the communities surrounding the lake. “This would be a real economic driver,” he said.