Open house and ribbon cutting scheduled for Wednesday evening
Ely’s west entrance has a brandnew look, and the general public gets their first opportunity to see why on Wednesday.
A grand opening and ribbon cutting for the Ely Regional Trailhead Facility, which will also serve as an area visitor center and perhaps a new home for the Ely Chamber of Commerce, takes place from 5 to 8 p.m.
The program, which figures to include remarks from many officials and those who have been involved in the project, is slated to begin at 6 p.m.
Wednesday’s festivities mark the unofficial end of a $4.5 million project, which had many ups and downs over the course of a decade.
A news release from the city announcing the event stated, “This project has been years in the making, and we are incredibly proud to open its doors and share it with our community and everyone who helped make it a reality. This will be a family-friendly, casual event to recognize the many individuals who brought this vision to life and to celebrate the vibrant trail user community that makes our region so special.”
In addition to the open house, program and ribbon cutting, food trucks will be on site offering snacks and dinner items, while local clubs and organizations will be on hand for “introductions, questions and networking.”
Several years ago, the city first acquired $1.3 million in state bonding funds for the project, and a second infusion from the state provided another $1.5 million.
The project was stymied, however by cost overruns attributed in part to the Covid-19 pandemic, but the city later acquired a federal grant of $1.5 million to fill the gap.
Site work, utilities, a parking lot and construction of the building itself came in phases and now it’s ready for occupancy.
City officials have long identified the new building as a potential visitor center, but questions remained over how it would be staffed and by whom.
That may have been solved by recent discussions between the city and the Ely Chamber of Commerce.
Those parties have made progress in talks that may lead to the Chamber making the facility its new headquarters.
The Chamber of Commerce has been housed at its current log cabin home, on the east end of town, since 1978. That building is owned by the city and the Chamber is a lease tenant.
The trailhead project has been identified as the top economic development priority by the city of Ely, combining several components, ranging from economic development and recreation, to perhaps new housing at some point in the future.
The facility has direct connections to the David Dill Taconite snowmobile and ATV trail, the Prospector Loop ATV trail system, the Mesabi bike trail and the future North Country Trail as well.
