Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
HURLEY — The Iron County Board of Supervisors approved amending the county's recreation plan to include the Montreal Riverside Trail at the March 31 meeting, making the county eligible for a grant to purchase land near Interstate Falls in Kimball.
The grant — from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources — would allow the town of Kimball and The Northwoods Land trust to purchase 38.7 acres of land between U.S. 2 and the Montreal River and convert the land into a park, Will Andresen, the head of the University of Wisconsin's Iron County Extension Office, explained to the board.
“It will be perfectly situated along U.S. 2 so that cars could stop. There will be a parking lot and a walking trail into that land,” Andresen said.
The acquisition of the land would come at no cost to the county, Andresen told the board, as The Northwoods Land Trust is fundraising to provide the money the DNR requires local municipalities put toward the project in matching funds.
The land would expand the county's recreation opportunities, both in the short term and in the future, Andresen told the board. Not only would the land provide public access to the falls on the Wisconsin side of the Montreal River, it would also serve as a potential trailhead for a proposed Riverside Trail that would connect Interstate Falls to Hurley.
“We're excited about (the trail opportunities) because it will be great for our own residents, for safety and wellness, transportation and recreation,” said Andresen. “But really ... the main reason for doing this is for tourism, to enhance tourism. We know that a similar project that was done in western Wisconsin, that brings in $3.3 million a year in tourism ... we are doing it for job creation, business investment. We are doing it because that we know seasonal homeowners bring in, in a similar community, $33 million dollars. So we are doing it for our own residents for sure, but we are also doing it for our future residents as we try and attract business and investment in the community.”
Currently, Interstate Falls can't be accessed on the Wisconsin side of the river without using private land, Andresen told the Daily Globe.
The trail from Interstate Falls to Hurley would serve as a “rib” on the larger regional trail system that is being developed with the system's spine connecting the ski trails in Montreal Wis., to Sunday Lake in Wakefield.
“We're looking at it as both a short term win, for just the acquisition of that parcel, and also some day connecting a larger community-wide system,” Andresen told the Daily Globe later.
The application for grant funding is due in May, Andresen said, with a decision on funding coming later in the summer.
