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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Ely-area Joint Powers Board to meet with legislators

Keith Vandervort
Posted 11/14/18

ELY— The legislative priorities for the Ely area will be on the agenda on Monday, Nov. 26, during the Ely Area Community Economic Development Joint Powers Board’s annual sit-down with the …

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Ely-area Joint Powers Board to meet with legislators

Posted

ELY— The legislative priorities for the Ely area will be on the agenda on Monday, Nov. 26, during the Ely Area Community Economic Development Joint Powers Board’s annual sit-down with the region’s elected officials.

State Sen. Tom Bakk, state Rep. Rob Ecklund, St. Louis County Fourth District Commissioner-elect Paul McDonald, along with aides of other state and federal elected officials, will meet at the Grand Ely Lodge, beginning at 11:30 a.m. The event is open to the public.

The Joint Powers Board, with members from the city of Ely, city of Winton, ISD 696, town of Morse and town of Fall Lake, meets quarterly to address local and regional issues. The annual legislative meeting remains a focal point for the organization to share concerns and discuss issues face-to-face with lawmakers.

U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith will send representatives to the meeting, according to Joint Powers Recording Secretary Tom Coombe. As of Wednesday, U.S. Congressman-elect Pete Stauber had not responded to an invitation to attend. He is scheduled to attend orientation in Washington, D.C. that week. “I’ll see if he at least could send a representative,” Coombe said.

Other area entities, including the Range Association of Schools and Municipalities, Ely Chamber of Commerce, Vermilion Community College, and the Ely-Bloomenson Community Hospital will be represented at the event. The two-hour session includes an opportunity for the public to comment, if time permits.

The joint powers board, meeting Tuesday at Ely City Hall, finalized an agenda for the upcoming event. Joint Powers Chair and Winton Mayor Kathy Brandau said she wants the discussion to center on the issues brought up by members of the board. She said she felt that other groups, businesses, or individuals should be limited in their time to speak.

She specifically singled out the environmental advocates on one side of the copper-nickel mining argument that has waged in the community for many years. “Trust me, their time will be limited,” she said. “I will not let those people speak more than a few minutes, because I don’t want to listen to that.”

Ely Mayor Chuck Novak supported her. “It has gotten so repetitive. We’ve heard it all before. This is our group. This is our economic development group,” he said. “We are the government agencies that have our legislators come here to talk to us and we express to them what our desires are. It is getting convoluted and diluted.”

Joint Powers members say the session provides an opportunity for the area to speak with one voice and highlight area priorities and bring an assortment of issues to the attention of the legislators.

Novak said he wants to continue to press area lawmakers to take the lead to bring funding for affordable broadband and high-speed internet service to the Ely area. “I want to talk about economic development because that is what this group is,” he said. “Broadband is a big issue. The (recreational) trailhead is a big issue. We have to make sure we have funding for the Mesabi, Prospectors and Taconite trails.”

Other issues likely to be discussed include Local Government Aid and other state aid, town of Morse issues, the new permitting process for entry into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, and the Winton Post Office struggles.