Photo: IRRR

By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - February 24, 2025


Last week, the Minnesota Department of Iron Range Resources & Rehabilitation (IRRR) announced the most recent Culture and Tourism grant recipients, which includes the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, the Cook County YMCA, the Grand Marais Art Colony, and the Flintlock Range Association. 25 projects were awarded by the IRRR during this round of grant funds, totaling $504,000. Locally, the grant funds awarded for the four projects totaled over $80,000. 

Cook County YMCA

The Cook County YMCA received $30,000 for equipment for an inclusive playground. Alex Gugala, executive director, told Boreal Community Media that the new playground will replace the current one that sits in front of the building. "We will be fully renovating it with new fencing, turf, and updated equipment that will benefit the community as a whole." 

Generally, inclusive playgrounds remove barriers that prevent children from participating in play, including physical, sensory-based, and social. Gugala shared that the Cook County YMCA is still in the planning stages but that all are "very excited about the possibilities." 

Flintlock Range Association

The Flintrock Range Association received $14,100 for two covered shooting structures, skeet shooting machines, bear-proof trash receptacles, and safety signs. Funding will also be used to construct picnic tables and ADA-compliant shooting benches for the Flintlock Sports Park, the archery and shooting range facility. According to a press release, the Flintlock Range Association is partnering with Jordy Kirk, the Cook County High School shop teacher, to have students help construct the picnic tables and shooting benches. 

“We are grateful for the support from Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation, which will allow us to enhance the range and provide a safer, more accessible experience for individuals,” Justin Rexrode, president of the Flintlock Range Association, shared in the release. “These improvements will help ensure a quality outdoor recreation space for shooting sports and archery enthusiasts.”

Grand Marais Art Colony

The Grand Marais Art Colony received a $10,000 matching grant for an outdoor classroom and community gathering space at the 17 and 21 West Highway 61 locations. Currently, the Art Colony lacks ample greenspace for outdoor classes (for youth and for artists to practice specific art techniques) and gatherings in general, but additionally, greenspace that is ADA-accessible. Executive Director Ruth Pszwaro told Boreal Community Media that there is an "approximately 25 x 25-foot outdoor space that is currently unusable, overrun with weeds and in need of a new retaining wall as well as more appropriate water runoff solutions."

The Art Colony plans to work with Alisa Hudler at Taproot Landscaping on the project, which will also incorporate "environmentally resilient and beneficial design," including pollinator gardens and accommodations for water run-off. To make the space ADA-accessible, a ramp will be installed with access directly to the outdoor space. 

"In 2024, we hosted over 300 youth for various classes, art clubs, school field trips, and free events...The IRRRB funding will allow us to install landscaping and hardscaping solutions along with smaller pollinator gardens and a walkway," Pszwaro said. 

Grand Portage Reservation Tribal Council 

The Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Reservation Tribal Council received $30,000 to preserve the logs on The Log School and The Log Community Building. These historical structures became permanent fixtures of the area in the 1930s when government funding, primarily through the work of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), changed the landscape of the area. Old waterfront buildings were removed, and new frame homes, the log school, and the log community hall were built inland, moving the focus away from the water and towards new roads. 

Other awarded projects

In addition to the four projects listed above, over 20 other Culture & Tourism grants were awarded to entities across northern Minnesota by the IRRR. “These projects represent continuous improvements being made to the communities and amenities throughout the Taconite Assistance Area,” said IRRR Commissioner Ida Rukavina in a release. “Culture & Tourism grants, like all of our agency’s grants, are funded from Taconite Production Tax generated by the local mining industry. The investments made from that tax enrich the economy and quality of life for all of us who live and work here.”

Below is a list of the additional 21 projects that received grant funds from IRRR: 

• Aitkin County Friends of the Arts, Aitkin: $30,000 to add amenities to The Terrace, an outdoor downtown performance venue, including shade sails, benches, a performer’s green room, an ADA-compliant restroom, table umbrellas and AV equipment.
• American Bear Association, Orr: $30,000 to improve the infrastructure related to the parking lot, water softening system, ADA-compliant passenger bus and buildings.
• City of Babbitt: $30,000 to update city parks with ADA-compliant features, add trash receptacles and rebuild the skatepark.
• Bigfork Valley Community Foundation, Bigfork: $25,000 to launch Thousand Grand Lakes marketing campaign, a collaboration between Itasca County, Deer River, Edge of the Wilderness and Grand Rapids.
• Cast Outdoor Adventures Inc., Ely: $6,000 to purchase adaptive winter dog sledding equipment and expand program offerings.
• Crow Wing County Land Services, Crosby: $30,000 to add amenities to Milford Mine Memorial Park, including pavilions, benches, tables, signage, interpretive displays and brochures.
  
• Ely Area Community Foundation, Ely: $25,000 to convert an existing space at The Ely Hub into a community center style room.
• Ely’s Historic State Theater, Ely: $30,000 to add amenities including a new point-of-sale system, mobile concessions, a new website and ADA-compliant restrooms.
• Eveleth Heritage Society, Eveleth: $4,500 to preserve and relocate (in Eveleth) a historic mural that was in the now demolished Franklin Elementary School.
• Greenwood Community Recreation Board, Tower: $10,000 to resurface tennis courts and adapt them for pickleball and improve the grounds at the Greenwood Township Recreation Area.
• Hibbing Area Chamber of Commerce, Hibbing: $13,950 to purchase a mobile mural system and three mural wraps with solar lighting that may be displayed throughout the city.
• Iron Range Tourism Bureau, Virginia: $20,000 to launch a billboard marketing campaign in the St. Cloud area to promote tourism on the Iron Range.
• Itasca County Land Department, Grand Rapids: $30,000 to construct a pavilion and add an ADA-compliant vault toilet system at Bass Lake Park and Campground.
• Itasca Ski & Outing, Inc., Coleraine: $30,000 to make electrical upgrades and improve the efficiency of snowmaking operations at Mt. Itasca.
• John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon, North Shore: $9,500 to launch a marketing campaign to promote attendance at the event and throughout the North Shore.
• Judy Garland Museum, Grand Rapids: $14,000 to rebrand an existing children’s exhibit with a “Wizard of Oz” movie theme, including the addition of a yellow brick road and an interactive scarecrow think tank wall.
• Noatun Community Wooden Boat Works, Knife River: $12,000 to develop a workspace and purchase wood materials for a community boatbuilding project.
• Pelican Lake Resort Association, Orr: $25,000 to launch a digital and visual marketing campaign to promote the Pelican Lake area as a premier destination for outdoor recreation, tourism and family-friendly activities.
• Silica Volunteer Fire Department, Silica Township: $24,500 to create a pickleball court on an existing parking lot at Silica Community Center.
• Stages of the Range Players, Virginia: $9,500 to support the performance of four radio plays at nursing homes and three full plays on the Iron Range.
• Truman Blakesley American Legion Post 432, Warba: $11,500 to complete phase II renovation of the public park and campground in Feeley Township, including the addition of outdoor benches, indoor dining tables, signage and electrical upgrades to campsites