MPR: North Shore Development: Following the Sewer Line

North Shore Development: Following the Sewer Line
By Stephanie Hemphill
January 31, 2001

The North Shore of Lake Superior is one of Minnesota's favorite playgrounds, just beyond the Lester River northeast of Duluth. It's a drive into the wilderness. Small homes on large lots and a few motels dot the rugged rock shoreline, and the generous expanse of the lake gives a feeling of solitude. That may change dramatically in the next few years as a planned sewer line is laid down from Duluth to Knife River or even as far as Two Harbors. Advocates say the sewer line is needed because most of the individual septic tanks along the shore are failing, allowing raw effluent to drain into the ground water and the lake. A sewer would allow more development, which critics say could irrevocably change the character of the North Shore, and actually bring more pollution to the area.

Toni Fladmark plays with her dog Loki outside her home between Duluth and Two Harbors. Fladmark worries about the development that will come with a proposed sewer line.

THE GORGEOUS VIEWS AND THE FEELING of wilderness on the North Shore attract two million visitors every year. People are moving here, too. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency issued twice as many construction storm water permits in 2000 as five years earlier.

Many shore residents, including Toni Fladmark, say that as much as they want to protect the trout streams and the lake from untreated human waste, they're afraid the planned sewer line will transform a neighborhood of modest homes into a strip of motels and condos.

"One of the things we've relied on out here on the shore has been when there's a lack of adequate sewer facilities, you simply can't build that kind of a development. With the sewer line it takes away that impediment," says Fladmark.

Fladmark volunteered to serve on the planning and zoning board for Duluth Township, the rural community just northeast of the city of Duluth. She's been devoting a lot of time to the comprehensive planning process that's going on in advance of the sewer construction. But she worries that strict zoning laws won't protect the neighborhood from developers with deep pockets.

Township zoning administrator Wayne Dahlberg says the pressure is on already. "I've been getting a lot of inquiries from downstate. People looking at properties and what can they do with it," says Dahlberg.

It isn't just aesthetics that people are worrying about. More houses and motels could change the area in many ways. One estimate says for each home that's built, a community ends up spending more than $18,000 in roads and other infrastructure.

Ironically, the sewer that's supposed to protect the purity of Lake Superior water, is likely to bring other kinds of pollution. More residents and visitors will create more solid waste, more emissions from cars, and more runoff from impervious surfaces like driveways and parking lots.

The sewer line would deliver waste to the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District's treatment plant in Duluth. The district's Kurt Soderberg says more study is needed to try to predict the kinds of secondary pollution that might come with increased development.

"We're relying on the Environmental Assessment Worksheet where the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is the lead agency. We believe it needs to be done and needs to be addressed in a way that doesn't create other sorts of pollution that we can't anticipate right now. It needs to be dealt with up front," says Soderberg.

People also worry that as land values go up, followed by higher taxes, some residents will be tempted - or forced - to divide and sell part of their property in order to stay on the shore, further contributing to congestion.

Most people want the sewer because they don't want to pollute Lake Superior with their waste, but they also want to keep the small-town feel of their area.

Residents of three jurisdictions are working together to plan for the expected growth. They're conducting a survey to find out what people want for the area, and will develop a comprehensive plan to define where development should take place.

"The reason I moved out here: my grandfather built our home, and I love to keep it quiet and pristine. I don't want to see lots and lots of development, and I think it's a really smart thing that we're spending time and money on this," says Mary Weatherby-Berg, who went to the one of the meetings to share her concerns.

Township Zoning Administrator Wayne Dahlberg, who is also an architect, says he's in favor of a certain amount of growth.

"This is a wake-up call for us. People have been going from Duluth up to Two Harbors and beyond; well, all of a sudden with the septic being resolved, there's some new opportunities and I just hope they can be done right. We can control our own destiny here," according to Dahlberg.

Extension of the sewer line requires permits from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, which is preparing an environmental assessment of the project. The citizens group hopes to have its land-use plans ready for approval this summer, and construction on the sewer line is expected to begin in 2002.

Part Three: Balancing the Need for Housing

Stephanie Hemphill covers northeast Minnesota for Minnesota Public Radio. Reach her via e-mail at shemphill@mpr.org.

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