LAKE SUPERIOR – The Cook County Board of Commissioners signed an agreement with the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa on April 28 for the local sheriff’s office to take possession of a new marine vessel that can serve a variety of purposes on the North Shore.
The Band acquired four boats last fall with the help of state money. The need for the boats, local and state officials said, came after the Coast Guard permanently closed its station in Grand Marais in 2022.
Commissioner Garry Gamble said during the April 28 meeting of the county board that he was appreciative of the Band’s gift of the vessel. Gamble said it’s also important to understand all the “component parts” that come with the sheriff’s department receiving a boat valued at $493,000. The four custom vessels were commissioned from Lake Assault Boats in Superior, Wisc.
Outgoing Cook County Sheriff Pat Eliasen was in attendance during the April 28 meeting. Eliasen is resigning as sheriff, effective May 8. Ben Hallberg was sworn in as the interim sheriff during the April 28 meeting. Gamble asked Eliasen and other county staff during the meeting about affiliated costs that could or will come with the boat, like fuel, repairs, insurance, staff time, trainings, and storage. Eliasen said there are funds from the Minnesota Boat and Water Safety Grant and the federal Operation Stonegarden grant that can help offset some of the costs that will come from having the boat. Indeed, items such as fuel and oil can be covered under these grants, he said, as well as staff time spent on the water. If the boat needed a major repair, Eliasen said, such as for a significant motor issue or a cracked hull, that would be an expense the county would need to sort out accordingly.
Commissioner Deb White seemed to take issue with Gamble’s attempts to discuss possible expenses to the county now that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Grand Portage specific to the boat.
“Do we want to rely on our local fishermen out there? No,” White said. “So, whatever it costs to maintain this gift is just the cost of doing business.”
White then suggested the four boats Grand Portage received, with the Band keeping two and gifting one each to Cook and Lake counties, will assure the safety of everyone who recreates on the North Shore.
“No one will drown on Lake Superior,” White said. “Maybe other places, but not Lake Superior.”
The board voted 5-0 on April 28 to adopt the MOU with Grand Portage, which states, among other things, that Grand Portage will take ownership of the vessel if the county opts to no longer use it.
Gamble said he understood what was lost when the Coast Guard closed its station in 2022, in terms of being able to help people in distress on Lake Superior. However, Gamble said, it’s important to have a plan for the boat, knowing the county only has so many dollars it can allocate for any specific project. Gamble said maintenance and significant repairs could run from $20,000 to $100,000 on a vessel like the one it received. That being the case, Gamble said he wasn’t trying to “put a spoke in the wheel” regarding the boat, and expressed his support for the gift on numerous occasions during the meeting.
When the Coast Guard shuttered its Grand Marais station, it cited a low number of calls and budgetary restrictions as the primary reasons for the closure. State Sen. Grant Hauschild said the closure left the North Shore “stranded.” Hauschild, working with former state representative Rob Ecklund (now a lobbyist for Grand Portage), secured $3 million in the 2023 Judiciary and Public Safety Omnibus Bill for the Grand Portage Band of Chippewa to purchase the boats. With those funds, Grand Portage worked with the Cook County and Lake County Sheriff’s departments to design a comprehensive rescue plan for the North Shore to assist watercraft or other people in distress. Local officials have said previously that the North Shore sees enough emergencies on Lake Superior to make this partnership pertinent, with local distress calls during recent years ranging from large ships to paddlers attempting to reach Isle Royale from the mainland.
Hallberg said the boat it received from Grand Portage is currently in storage, though it should be hitting the water soon. The boat in Cook County could be used for routine patrols on Lake Superior, though current staffing levels would make that challenging, he said.
Lake County also received a boat and signed an MOU with Grand Portage. Lake County Administrator Matt Huddleston told the Northshore Journal this week that the Lake County Sheriff’s Office plans to keep the boat in the water at the marina in Silver Bay during the summer.
“Ongoing storage of the boat during the offseason and routine maintenance will have to be included in our budget as we move forward,” Huddleston said.
