Lutsen Township seeks county support for designating town hall as emergency shelter
After multiple severe weather events in recent years, the Lutsen Township is looking to designate the Lutsen Town Hall as a short-term emergency shelter for west-end residents.
Although the Lutsen Township has secured funding and numerous donations to outfit the facility with the needed emergency equipment, the township is nearly $9000 shy of funding and is requesting monetary support from the county to close the gap.
The Lutsen Township secured $7,000 from the Tofte Township, received donated used cots, allocated $10,000 in the Lutsen Township budget using American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money, and received a $1000 donation from Arrowhead Cooperative for the transition to an emergency shelter.
On Tuesday, April 8, Sharon Hexum-Platzer, deputy clerk of Lutsen Township, and Mike Keyport, the Cook County emergency manager, went before the Cook County Board of Commissioners to request $8500 in funding to purchase a generator for the Lutsen Town Hall. The generator is the final piece of the puzzle to equip the town hall with the necessary emergency equipment.
Initially, Keyport explored using federal funding through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Hazard Mitigation Plan program, which provides funding for states and counties for mitigation and emergency-related initiatives. However, the plan is currently being updated, and the funds are inaccessible at this moment, he said.
The plan needs to be updated by the state and FEMA before funds can be distributed.
“That likely will not happen until, I’m guessing, November of this year. Hopefully, by year’s end,” Keyport said.
Keyport said he did submit a notice of interest to the state and FEMA regarding the request for funding for the Lutsen Town Hall. He said the county was put in the queue for when the updated Hazard Mitigation Plan is completed. However, Keyport said, after speaking with FEMA and the ongoing federal funding cuts by the Trump administration, funding is in jeopardy of being cut.
Keyport said the federal funding to finish updating the Hazard Mitigation Plan, however, is secure.
With uncertainties about the future of FEMA funding, Keyport and Hexum-Platzer said they needed to explore alternative funding sources, hence coming before the Cook County Board of Commissioners.
“We’re moving forward,” Hexum-Platzer said. “What we would like from you is support.”
During the meeting, Hexum-Platzer presented a petition with approximately 200 signatures from west end residents requesting support from the Cook County Board of Commissioners to use the Lutsen Town Hall as a short-term emergency shelter. The petition included a request for a nominal amount of support to help the Lutsen Township in this endeavor.
“There are people here that really want to have this done, and we can’t wait,” Hexum-Platzer said.
Hexum-Platzer said the emergency shelter would not only serve for power outages, such as the December 2022 storm but would also be a safe place for individuals to stay in the event of related emergency events, such as a wildfire. The town hall can seat approximately 200 people, but for sleeping arrangements would be far less.
“The town hall can seat 200, but it couldn’t sleep 200,” Hexum-Platzer said.
Lutsen Town Hall | Photo by Chuck Olsen
Commissioner Ginny Storlie said that Keyport’s news about the potential FEMA funding cuts was not encouraging, but regardless, she thinks the county should move forward with exploring possibilities.
The board of commissioners discussed available funding options to support Lutsen Township. The options include using a tax forfeits timber sale fund or the county’s available $150,000 in ARPA funds. Auditor and Treasurer Braidy Powers said the ARPA funding isn’t designated but is accessible for levy reduction if needed.
“We have the money now, and it’s available for any use,” Powers said.
Commissioner Garry Gamble said, “I feel that when entities, whatever they, whomever they, might be, show their resourcefulness and their willingness to work hard for what they want as opposed to simply coming and asking for money, that speaks volumes to us as decision makers to show that your stewardship is backed up by your efforts.”
After further discussion about the town hall’s capacity to house residents during an emergency, the board of commissioners agreed to support the $8500 request from Lutsen Township.
Powers and the Cook County attorney will spend additional time determining whether to allocate the county’s ARPA funds or the tax forfeiture funds to the project.
Commissioner Storlie said it would be a good opportunity for the board to explore emergency shelter options up the Gunflint Trail and on the east end near Hovland in the near future.
Kalli Hawkins April 10, 2025
