A new housing and resort development located in the North Shore community of Silver Bay broke ground last week. Boathouse Bay will be built out over the next five years, with construction scheduled to begin this summer. It will have up to 53 units of residential housing, including single-family lots, townhomes, and vacation rentals along Lake Superior. There will be approximately 110 units of commercial storage and a 2,200-square-foot event center.

The city of Silver Bay entered into a Development Agreement with Sawtooth 16, LLC to develop the property. In addition, the city has future development visions that include a Fishing Village with restaurants and retail offerings to serve local residents and tourists. 

According to Nelson French, chair of the city’s economic development authority, Boathouse Bay is the second largest private investment into a project in the history of Silver Bay, after the Northshore taconite mine.

 Artist rendition of Boathouse Bay. From the Department of Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation

Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation supported the Boathouse Bay project with over $1.4 million in Development and Community Infrastructure grants to the city of Silver Bay. The grant will help pay for the water, sewer, roads, site work, and engineering related to the infrastructure needed to support the development. Total project investment is estimated at approximately $20-$25 million.

“One of the areas that our agency is committed to is housing, which is a large factor when measuring a region’s economy and quality of life,” said Commissioner Ida Rukavina, Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation. “The supply and choice of housing inventory in northeastern Minnesota is low, and the demand is high. The need for additional and more choices of housing impacts employers, employees, communities, and new and existing residents. Boathouse Bay will help increase the housing capacity in our region, and we support Silver Bay in their plans to grow their community.”

Learn more about Boathouse Bay.