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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Moving forward

Cultural center set to begin new phase of construction

Jodi Summit
Posted 8/3/16

TOWER- “This was supposed to be a thank you event,” said Lake Vermilion Cultural Center Chair Mary Batinich, “not actually a fundraiser.”

But a fundraiser it was.

The event was an …

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Moving forward

Cultural center set to begin new phase of construction

Posted

TOWER- “This was supposed to be a thank you event,” said Lake Vermilion Cultural Center Chair Mary Batinich, “not actually a fundraiser.”

But a fundraiser it was.

The event was an afternoon reception at a newly-constructed Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired lake home on the northeast shore of Lake Vermilion. The three-story lake home sits perched into a ledge rock hillside, high above one of the quietest corners of the busy lake. Glass walls offer panoramic views of pristine lakeshore, and outdoor living spaces include “living decks,” with stone walkways and beautiful plantings along the edges.

Architect Thomas Jones, who has a firm in California, was also on hand. He talked about the design process and the challenges of designing the home to fit seamlessly onto the landscape.

Hosts Clayton Halunen and David Duddingston, who have attended fundraisers for the LVCC project before, graciously welcomed guests, which included local volunteers, seasonal residents, and friends of LVCC board members who are supporting the project.

By the end of the day, pledges and donations totaling as much as $100,000 had been tallied, according to Batinich; this includes a $50,000 challenge grant from the Halunen family, which had been offered to LVCC last year. Two attendees also made $10,000 donations at the event. Included in the above total is $10,000 donated by many family and friends in memory of Mary’s husband, Alex, who recently passed away. An additional $10,000 was raised by the $500 donations of the 20 travelers who will participate in a European trip Mary is leading in the fall of 2017.

LVCC will also be selling the old St. Mary’s Church lot, on Tower’s North Second St. This year’s Midsummer Dinner was also a great success, she said, surpassing fundraising amounts from previous years.

The fundraising is a promising start for the completion of the project, which is estimated to cost $600,000.

“We were just thrilled with the response,” said Batinich. “I feel like the floodgates are open now. This is where we needed to be.”

Batinich said support for the project has been growing year to year. The board, whose new president is Linda Haugen, is especially pleased to see more support from the local community.

Batinich said the support of the Halunen family has also been crucial to the fundraising effort. Clayton’s mother, Joanne, is a retired art teacher from the Virginia area and Lake Vermilion, and always felt the arts were one of the most important backbones of a community.

“They wanted their own kids to enjoy the arts,” she said. “And now the LVCC will be there for all our families.”

St. Mary’s Hall was moved to its new location on Tower’s Main Street last fall. A carriage house/garage was also constructed on the site with help from the IRRRB.

The LVCC board is meeting this week to finalize construction plans for late summer and fall. Work will begin on the Halunen lobby addition, the center section of the new cultural center that will tie the historic church into the new construction. They hope to have the lobby enclosed this fall, so the building can be heated over the winter and interior work can continue.

The board is also looking for some volunteer skilled carpenters to help install the siding on the carriage house, later in August. Anyone willing to help out is asked to call Mary at 612-360-7079. The group is also looking for some volunteer painters to help paint the siding, before it is installed.

You can learn more about the LVCC project at http://www.vermilionculturalcenter.org/.