State bonding bill delivers funding for Gunflint Trail, Grand Marais wastewater treatment facility

Two infrastructure projects in Cook County are set to receive a significant boost after lawmakers approved funding through the Minnesota Legislature’s bonding bill.

The City of Grand Marais is slated to receive $1.9 million of state funding for improvements to the Grand Marais wastewater treatment facility.

Cook County will receive $1 million toward improvements to the last 10 miles of the Gunflint Trail.

“This is really exciting for us,” County Administrator Kristen Trebil-Halbersma said about the Gunflint Trail funding. “This is the first time that we have hired our own lobbyist for transportation needs, and so I think we’re thrilled. We’re excited that we were successful the first year.”

The 10-mile section of the Gunflint Trail is part of the Gunflint Trail Scenic Byway and serves as an access point to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

The infrastructure project consists of resurfacing the entire 10-mile section, replacing 16 culverts, and replacing four bridges.

The total projected cost for the project is $16 million.

Through other funding sources and the recent $1 million from the state bonding bill, the county has secured $5.5 million towards the project. If the county can close the funding gap, the project is slated to begin in the summer of 2028.

“So 2028 is the goal, which still gives us plenty of time to keep going after more funding,” said Robbie Hass, Cook County highway engineer.

Hass said he recently submitted a $3 million grant request for the project through the Lessard-Sams Outdoor Heritage Fund, and county officials have been in talks with Minnesota Sens. Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar about federal funding requests.

“Which doesn’t mean anything is guaranteed, but that’s a huge step to getting what we are asking,” Hass said.

Trebil-Halbersma said the $1 million in state funding, paired with the other secured funding sources, is “very helpful as we move forward with our federal ask as well, because the more that we can show that we have different pockets and pools of funds to pull from.”

For city officials, work also continues to close the funding gap for needed improvements to the Grand Marais wastewater treatment facility.

City officials have been working for several years to address needed improvements to its aging wastewater treatment facility, which was originally constructed in the 1940s. The last major infrastructure improvements to the facility were completed in 1988.

Grand Marais Wastewater Treatment Facility | Photo by Kalli Hawkins

Although the improvements have been a focus of the city council for years, the wastewater treatment facility was recently named the city’s top priority for 2026.

In 2023, engineering firm AE2S estimated the total improvement costs for the facility at nearly $9 million. With inflation and rising costs in recent years, city officials have discussed in council meetings that they estimate the project now sits at $10 million or slightly more.

In January, the city received word that it had been awarded $1 million in federal funding for wastewater treatment facility improvements following congressional approval of an appropriations bill. Federal funding for the Grand Marais wastewater treatment facility was earmarked as a congressionally directed spending item within FY 2026 appropriations for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s State and Tribal Assistance Grants (STAG) account for water infrastructure projects.

With recently allocated state funding, the city has now secured $2.9 million for the project.

“We will continue to find ways to get more money,” said Grand Marais Mayor Tracy Benson. “And it just may be, as usual, a matter of time.”

Benson said the city plans to begin conversations with the Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation (IRRR) and continue exploring grant opportunities for municipalities. “It’s still quite a heavy lift for us,” she said.

Throughout the legislative session, city and county officials traveled to St. Paul several times to advocate for funding for their respective projects. The city had requested $5 million in state funding for the wastewater treatment facility. The county had requested $10 million for the Gunflint Trail improvement project.

Several other cities and counties across the state also received funding for water infrastructure and transportation projects.

During the legislative session, lawmakers passed a $1.2 billion bonding package that provided $420 million for water infrastructure and $177 million for transportation projects.

Kalli Hawkins May 28, 2026