Funding for Lake Vermilion State Park secured, deal with landowner must still be struck

In a climactic and fitting end to a legislative session that produced record capital bonding investments in Minnesota's parks and trails, Gov. Tim Pawlenty and leaders in the House and Senate reached an 11th hour agreement on a $105.5 million supplemental bonding bill (HF4072) that included $20 million to acquire land for Lake Vermilion State Park.

The supplemental bonding bill also restored $2 million in funding for the Old Cedar Avenue Recreational Trail Bridge that Gov. Tim Pawlenty line item vetoed from the bonding bill he signed on April 7. Combined, the two bonding bills produced $72.787 million in investments to improve Minnesota's state, metro and regional parks and trails.

Funding for Lake Vermilion State Park, which had been championed by Gov. Pawlenty and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) since July 2007, was not included in the $717 million bonding bill signed by the governor on April 7.

The supplemental bonding bill (HF4072) passed by a 50-17 vote in the Senate before passing in the House by a 107-26 margin. Passage in both legislative bodies took place late on Sunday, May 18, the final day that legislation could be passed this session.

"The Parks & Trails Council of Minnesota applauds Gov. Tim Pawlenty and the Legislature for combining their creative energies to ensure that generations of Minnesotans will have an opportunity to experience one of Minnesota's most spectacular parks at Lake Vermilion," said Parks & Trails Council of Minnesota President Tim Farrell.

Agreement on a sale price for the land for Lake Vermilion State Park must still be negotiated between the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and U. S. Steel, the owner of the land. In July 2007, U.S. Steel agreed to halt for one year its plans to build a private 150-unit luxury-home development on the land. That agreement expires on Aug. 1.

The park, combined with the adjacent Soudan Underground Mine State Park, would provide access to more than 10 miles of recreation shoreline, 40,000 acres of water, 365 islands and 3,700 acres of land for the public to enjoy on one of the state's most breathtaking lakes.