ELY – The lights are back on in Ely, and the smell of popcorn is in the air.

Hundreds of Ely residents and visitors lined Sheridan Street at the top of the hill last Saturday night for a relighting of the State Theater building’s exterior lights.

The event was not much on the surface. The lights of the city’s landmark went dark some 20 years ago. The theater inside remains a shell of its former self. Any movie showing is likely a year away.

But the relighting of the marquee was more like a rebirth – a rebirth of Ely.

A couple of years ago, a major state newspaper wrote an article about Ely and highlighted the efforts of John Ott and his family and the buildings they had purchased in Ely with an ambitious redevelopment plan.

The Ott family hopes to make the 300-seat venue a space for movies, live music, business conferences, and other community events. The overhaul could cost $1.5 million, but the Otts are taking a chance on Ely. The family’s Missouri-based firm now owns eight vacant buildings and has ambitious redevelopment plans for all of them.

At about the same time, a tourism and development organization, called Incredible Ely, was formed. Many dedicated people set about making some actual changes in this city to attract tourists and businesses.

The Star-Tribune article was headlined, “Ely aiming for a renaissance.”

Kara Polyner, one of those dedicated Ely residents, as well as a new business owner who threw her support behind Incredible Ely, was asked to say a few words before the light switch was turned on across the street at the theater.

“The meaning of ‘renaissance’ is re-birth which is what I think is going on here,” Polyner said.

“If you can’t see the positive momentum and construction and improvements that are going on in our downtown, maybe these stats will help:

‰ Six new businesses are opening this spring and summer in our downtown area;

‰ Five existing businesses are moving to the downtown or expanding their current location and/or services;

‰Two businesses have changed hands and are continuing to operate;

‰Seven business/retail locations are in the process of being renovated;

‰And a slew of updated office space will soon be available.

Now that’s a sign of a renaissance if I ever saw one,” she said.

Just last month, many people in the Ely community scoffed at the idea that the city of Ely is thriving rather than dying. Those who dared say they could see a bright and renewed future for Ely were heckled at a community meeting concerning the renewal of leases for Twin Metals Minnesota to continue their sulfide mining exploration project adjacent to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

“The Ott’s chose to invest in Ely,” Polyner continued. “They see the potential. Yes, it’s a business decision to them, albeit a good one, but they have chosen to preserve Ely, not change it into what they want it to be, but to help keep and enhance the character of what helped make Ely what it is today.”

Polyner moved here in 2001. She said she planned on winning the lottery and buying the Tanner Hospital, the State Theater and the VFW building and doing exactly what the Otts are doing in Ely. “I no longer need to play the lottery because we have hit the jackpot,” she said.

“Most of Ely’s residents can’t buy a building or renovate a property. We need to ask ourselves what we can do to invest in our community, the place we love to live. It can be as simple as volunteering to water flowers,” she said.

As a member of the city’s Heritage Preservation Commission, Polyner also called attention to the Otts’ attention to the historical value of these buildings for the city of Ely. “Anyone could come in and tear them down, that’s the easy way,” she said. “But to restore and protect these historical treasures benefits our whole town and its rich history. This theater was like a big bruise in our downtown, a reminder of harder times. But with its re-opening, hopefully next year, I like to think that this community will do all we can to help it succeed because we now know what it was like without one. I personal can’t wait to take my girls to weekly movie nights right here in town.”