Lake Vermilion State Park in Limbo
The House-Senate Capital Investment Conference Committee did not include funding for the proposed Lake Vermilion State Park in the bonding bill (HF 380) passed by both the House and Senate on April 2. Officials from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) testified before the Conference Committee that the agency has been in negotiations to determine a purchase price for the land owned by U.S. Steel but those negotiations have not been concluded. In its testimony, the DNR reported that U.S. Steel had agreed to extend the deadline for reaching an agreement from March 15 to May 15.
The legislation authorizing the establishment of Lake Vermilion State Park is stalled in the legislative committee process. The House bill, HF3433, is pending in the House Environment and Natural Resources Finance Committee, while the Senate bill, SF2076, is pending in the Senate E-12 Education Finance Division.
The final chapter on Lake Vermilion is still a long way away. The Constitutional deadline for adjournment is May 19.
