CRANE LAKE- In the heart of Minnesota’s northern wilderness, the long-held dream of a community became reality on Friday as Crane Lake cut the ribbon on its new visitor center for Voyageurs National Park.
“We cut this ribbon not just to open a visitor center,” said St. Louis County Commissioner Paul McDonald, who emceed the event, “but to welcome everyone to the heart of America’s best idea.”
While the moment marked the official opening, the journey spanned decades. Speaker after speaker acknowledged the vision and persistence of Crane Lake residents, whose determination over more than 40 years ultimately brought the project to life.
“This is about people,” said Rep. Roger Skraba, R-Ely. “This is about what’s good.”
The new 5,100-square-foot center opened quietly to the public on May 24, and in less than two weeks had already welcomed more than 400 visitors, according to Crane Lake’s Gretchen Janssen, who was heavily involved in the project’s development and spoke on behalf of local organizers at the event.
The building includes a multi-use auditorium, office space, and a striking lobby featuring temporary exhibits on dark skies, the northern lights, and Indigenous history and culture. The exterior signage reflects the layered stories of the site itself.
“The building is designed with natural colors and elements and with a unique shape that was inspired by the crane taking flight over water,” Janssen said.
Altogether, more than $10 million was invested in the visitor center, campground, and boat landing improvements, with major contributions from the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund and the Department of Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation with additional financial and programmatic support from DEED, the DNR, the Voyageurs Conservancy, and the National Park Service.
NPS signed a 20-year lease with the township to utilize the facility, which will also have space for township offices.
“This is precisely why average Minnesotans voted to support taxation for the Environmental Trust Fund – to build real projects that directly benefit our citizens,” Janssen said. “The center, the campground, the boat access will be a wonderful gateway for generations to enjoy the greatness of Superior National Forest, Quetico Provincial Park, and of course, our beloved Voyageurs National Park.”
Janssen and former VNP Superintendent Bob DeGross shared the honor of the ribbon-cutting using a large pair of scissors. DeGross called the center’s completion one of the high points of his career.
Sen. Grant Hauschild, DFL-Hermantown, called the new center “a gateway to the best of Minnesota,” highlighting the region’s natural riches and the pride its residents take in preserving and sharing them.
“When you think about the fact that we have Voyageurs National Park, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, the North Shore, the mining and forestry industry that we have here in northern Minnesota. If it wasn’t for our region, we’d basically be Kansas,” he said, drawing laughs. “No offense to Kansas.”
He praised the spirit of collaboration behind the center’s creation, noting, “You all get to live it and breathe it every day, but we want everybody to see the magic that is northern Minnesota.”
U.S. Sen. Tina Smith called the center “a link to the future and the past of this part of Minnesota,” reflecting on the land’s deep Indigenous history and its enduring traditions of fishing, timber, and mining.
“The people who come to this place because they love to fish, they love to camp – the history and the tradition of fishing and mining and timber – that is all part of what makes this place what it is,” she said.
Smith praised the new building as a place that will “help connect people to that legacy and that history,” and offered heartfelt congratulations to everyone who made it possible.
“Congratulations, everybody,” she said. “You did an amazing job building this.”
Smith told the Timberjay that she was struck by the beauty of Crane Lake during a boat tour Friday, noting it was her first-ever visit to the area.
“I’ve been to many lakes in this part of the state, but I’ve never had a chance to come to Crane Lake,” Smith said. “Even though it’s still a little smoky, the beauty of it is so fantastic.”
Smith said she and her hosts traveled through a narrow stretch of the lake before heading to a bluff area.
“We went up to the big cliffs, which were so beautiful,” she said. “And then we had a great lunch at Nelson’s Resort and had a walleye sandwich, and it was just a great day.”
The grand opening also included remarks from a wide cast of longtime supporters and leaders who helped push the project forward. Former state Sen. Tom Bakk reflected on infrastructure work in the region, including the early purchase of the boat landing. Former Rep. Rob Ecklund recalled his work on the LCCMR to secure initial land funding. He was joined by interim Superintendent Brian Harmon and St. Louis County Commissioner Keith Nelson, all of whom shared in the moment of community pride.
Brewing storm?
The Crane Lake Visitor Center grand opening happened against a backdrop of controversial proposals by the Trump administration that would have devastating effects for NPS.
According to a recent analysis by the National Parks Conservation Association, the president’s 2026 budget proposal would slash more than $1 billion from the NPS, the largest cut in the agency’s 109-year history. The proposal includes a 30 percent reduction in the agency’s operations and staffing budgets, a $900 million hit to park operations, and additional cuts to construction, recreation, and historic preservation funds. It also calls for the transfer of certain national park sites to the states, removing them from the federal system.
“This is the most extreme, unrealistic and destructive National Park Service budget a President has ever proposed in the agency’s 109-year history,” NPCA President and CEO Theresa Pierno said. “It’s nothing less than an all-out assault on America’s national parks.”
The proposal comes at a time when national parks are more popular than ever, with nearly 332 million visits recorded in 2024. Despite that surge, the NPCA says the administration has frozen hiring, forced staff resignations, eliminated routine purchasing, canceled leases, and banned travel. A major workforce reduction is reportedly still on the horizon.
While much of the backlash has come from conservation groups and Democratic lawmakers, the idea of transferring parks to state control is raising eyebrows among Republicans, too.
At Crane Lake, Smith was blunt in her assessment of both the House-passed budget bill and the president’s long-term plan for the NPS.
“That would be really tough to take on, especially when you think about the impact on staffing,” Smith said of the House bill, which she described as a partisan effort. “They’re not looking for Democratic support to pass it, and that includes cuts to the National Park Service.”
But Smith reserved her strongest criticism for the administration’s broader budget framework.
“It would amount to a huge cut in the budget, the operating budget of national parks,” she said. “That is not workable. There would be no people to be there at the gates to let people in, to answer their questions, to interpret the park, to clean the latrines, to make sure that the campsites are taken care of, to make sure that it’s safe.”
“It would be absolutely devastating,” she added.
Smith said she’s looking for common ground with Republican colleagues who also value their home-state parks.
“A lot of my Republican colleagues care a lot about the national parks in their states,” she said. “We have one national park in Minnesota, and I’m going to fight as hard as I can for it.”