Around the Circle This Week: August 17, 2018

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New at the Helm: The Duluth Seaway Port Authority got a new executive director this week, chosen from its own ranks and a woman for the first time in the authority’s 60+year history. Deb DeLuca has worked for the port authority since 2014 as its director of government and environmental affairs. “We are fortunate to have had a history of strong leaders at the Duluth Seaway Port Authority. We are adding another chapter to that legacy in naming Deb DeLuca as our new executive director,” Port Authority Board President Ray Klosowski said in a press release. Deb was unanimously approved by the board at a special meeting Monday. Board members on the search committee pointed out that they had candidates from across the country and the world during a four-month search, but Deb proved “head and shoulders above the rest.”

Deb becomes the eighth head of the port authority since it was formed. She has worked in both the public and private sectors, including 14 years operating her own consulting company, DeLuca Strategies, helping clients with grant writing and funding and management strategies. She holds a bachelor’s degree in molecular biology and a master’s in land resources, was a founding member of Minnesota Brownfields and, an outdoor enthusiast, she is a former U.S. national cycling team member. In an interview with Renee Passal for WDIO, Deb talked about her place as the first woman to lead the port authority. “I’m proud and humbled at the opportunity. I myself as a woman, growing up I appreciated all the women role models that were there ahead of me. Among her focus for the future will be expanding intermodal cargo options. “It’s huge and we need to make sure that the region takes advantage of that fully.”

Ports' Economic Punch: The Wisconsin Commercial Ports Association this week reiterated positive Wisconsin statistics from the recently released “Economic Impacts of Maritime Shipping in the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Region.” In 2017, six commercial ports, including Duluth/Superior, had a $1.4 billion impact on economic activity in the state, supporting more than 7,400 jobs and $480 million in personal income from wages. The ports also generated $241.1 million in federal, state and local taxes through Wisconsin. That was a slight decrease from 2008 when, according to the association’s website, the ports generated $1.6 billion in economic impact and 9,550 jobs, but a slight wage increase from that year which generated $426 million in wages. The economic impact study released in July breaks down impacts for all Great Lakes states. In Michigan, that state’s commercial ports generated $4.1 billion in economic activity, 25,910 jobs, $1.7 billion in personal wage income and $763.2 million in federal, state and local taxes. In Minnesota, that state’s commercial ports generated $1.4 billion in economic activity, 6,161 jobs, $413 million in personal wage income and $230 million in federal, state and local taxes.

Ships Without Crews?: Michigan Technological University last week unveiled two projects intended to investigate development of autonomous maritime technologies, reports Garrett Neese with the Mining Gazette. Its new Maritime Autonomy Research Site, part of the Great Lakes Research Center, will facilitate testing of unmanned research vessels. Its Smart Ships Coalition, unveiled along with the new research site last Friday, partners researchers, government policymakers, maritime experts and others to develop guidelines for using crewless boats to conduct research and, in the near term, search and rescues. Among the advantages of such boats would be sending them into conditions not acceptable with people aboard. Future applications may include the maritime trade. A demonstration last week showed off a personal watercraft, equipped with sonar, that could pilot itself.

A New Entry: During last fiscal year (2017-18), more than 1.2 million travelers passed through the port of entry (POE) at Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, on their way across the international border. This week, a nine-year, $51 million project for a new and improved POE, at top, was completed with a ribbon cutting at the new Canada Border Services Agency facility, which

replaced the 1962 structure that became outdated and too small to handle the high traffic that had developed there. The new POE is four times larger than the old (in Canadian Customs photo). The Federal Bridge Corporation Limited, a Canadian Crown corporation, is both the developer and owner of the structure. “The phased commissioning of the Canadian Bridge Plaza Redevelopment Project was completed through exhaustive planning efforts that ensured minimal disruption to bridge traffic and CBSA operations,” Micheline Dubé, (in center) president and chief executive officer of the Federal Bridge Corporation Limited, said at the opening, adding, “This is a monumental achievement considering the scale and complexity of the project.” Terry Sheehan, (center left) member of Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie, added, “The Sault Ste. Marie port of entry is one of the top 20 largest commercial ports in Canada. Denis Vinette (center right), an associate vice president in the CBSA, also helped to cut the ribbon.The new CBSA facility reflects our commitment to protecting national security while maintaining the vital flow of legitimate travel and trade across the border. CBSA provides a border-crossing website that estimates border-crossing wait times at Ports of Entry like those at the Sault and Fort Frances/International Falls.

Fine Fishing: Commercial fishing operations along Lake Superior’s Wisconsin shore report phenomenal catches this year, according to a story by Rich Kremer for Wisconsin Public Radio. Craig Hoopman, who chairs the state Department of Natural Resources Lake Superior Commercial Fishing Board, recently told the states Natural Resources Board that “We’re averaging between 2,500 and 3,000 pounds of whitefish per day in the traps.” Craig credits fish refuges among the Apostle Islands – areas where fishing is prohibited and the fishing season ends before the October/November spawning – for contributing to the health of both the whitefish and lake trout populations in Lake Superior.

Resorting to Retirement: Scott Harrison and Nancy Burns (in photo) shepherded Lutsen Resort on Lake Superior for three decades as its but this week announced their retirement – and new ownership at the iconic resort on Minnesota’s North Shore. The historic resort, which

sold Wednesday to North Shore Resort Company, owned by Bryce Campbell and his mother, Sheila. Scott and Nancy called selling the North Shore icon "bittersweet," but they look forward to new opportunities. Meanwhile, Bryce says he’s proud to carry on with the Lutsen legacy of providing fond vacation memories. It was young Swedish homesteader Charles Axel Nelson who turned his home into an inn and then a resort at the scenic spot at the Poplar River. In the early years, most guests would arrive by traveling on Lake Superior on vessels including the America. That would change in the 1920s, when the road was built that became Highway 61. In 2010, the resort marked 125 years of continuous operation, and George Nelson Jr., the founder’s grandson, was there to help celebrate. George and his father, George Sr., created Lutsen Ski Area that opened in 1948 (and is now Lutsen Mountains under separate ownership from the resort). Over the years, the resort expanded to offer many lodging options such as townhomes and condos, as well as a health spa and guided activities for families. Lutsen Resort made the cover of Lake Superior Magazine in a story in the December/January 2009 issue.

Meanwhile, at a Nearby Bridge: The new Cook County Highway 5 (Ski Hill Road) bridge is open earlier than expected between Eagle Ridge Resort and Papa Charlie’s at Lutsen Mountains. The $823,000 concrete structure, which replaces a load-restricted steel bridge that had deteriorated timber abutments, had been scheduled for completion by the end of September. “It’s complex to manage the impacts of replacing a bridge without an available detour, and Cook County is glad to reopen Highway 5 all the way to the hiking trail parking lot before Labor Day weekend and leaf season,” says Highway Engineer Krysten Foster. There may be periodic weekday daytime lane closures through the end of August to finish lighting, painting and sweeping.

Harnessing the Sun: Hauser's Superior View Farm near Bayfield, Wisconsin, installed a new rooftop solar array system on its greenhouse support building that will generate electricity to 20,000 feet of greenhouses, apple grading/cider facilities and surrounding agricultural buildings. The multi-generational farm family sees this as a way to ensure the healthy future of its operation. The ready-to-install, 19.4kW solar photovoltaic system is from Next Energy Solutions in Shell Lake. Partial funding for the farm's project came from grant through a partnership between the state and its public utilities.

Boy and His Boats: You may remember Evin Poquette, the Hayward, Wisconsin, 9-year-old who saved up $1,000 so he could become a lifetime member of the Lake Superior Marine Museum Association earlier this year. Captain Edward Montgomery, president of Sea Service in Superior, was so impressed by what he calls "the young nautiphile" that he offered to take him on the tug Sea Bear as Deckhand for a Day. That day was Thursday, and Hattie Clotter of Fox21 joined Evin, along with his mom and, pictured with Evin here, younger brother Ryerson (yes, named for the freighter) and cousin Abbi, for the most memorable day. Jack Nissen of the Duluth News Tribune, who was also aboard, captured Evin's excitement in the 9-year-old-soon-to-be-10-year-old's announcement: "I've never felt so alive."

Bolder Boltz: At the International Wolf Center in Ely, Minnesota, the recent retirement of Aidan, its alpha male for seven years in the Exhibit Pack, has changed the dynamics among the remaining wolves in that pack. The biggest difference so far appears to be from Boltz, a somewhat skittish and timid male representing the Great Plains subspecies (Canis lupus nubilus) who came to the center at 30 days old in 2012 and didn’t benefit from the usual intense socialization given there to its ambassador wolves. With the removal of Aidan, with whom Boltz had a tense relationship, to the retirement pack area, Boltz has become more at ease, occasionally showing some dominance and taking food bites earlier in the feeding instead of always last. The center posted a nice summary of the changes while photographer Heidi Pinkerton took this great shot of Boltz relaxing. The center is working on a $1.1 million Wolf Discovery Center exhibit to open in 2019. You can peek at the wolves in both the retirement and exhibit packs on the wolfcams.

Photo & graphic credits: Paul L. Hayden; PR Newswire; Canada Border Services Agency; Paul Sundberg/Lutsen Resort; Cook County Highway Department; Sara Poquette; Heidi Pinkerton

Around the Circle This Week editor: Konnie LeMay