Bessemer mulls funding for trailhead

BESSEMER — The Bessemer Recreation Commission discussed ongoing plans for a new trailhead for the Iron Belle Trail behind city hall on Thursday evening.

The commission heard from city manager Charly Loper that the Bessemer Area Historical Society and Tom Kangas, a resident historian, had agreed to help draft a letter of the historical significance of the railway to the area and the importance of preserving it with the trailhead. The letter will be used as part of a Department of Natural Resources Trust Fund application.

“We just need a letter explaining the historical significance of it to hopefully help us score some more points,” Loper said. “One of (the DNR’s) main things is natural significance and we do have quite a bit of that that the trail access is on, but I think some historical significance might help us as well.”

Kangas said the railroad grade behind city hall was built in 1887 as a line for the Wisconsin Central Railroad. Three years prior in 1884 a railroad line came to the city from the opposite direction of Watersmeet with the Milwaukee, Lakeshore and Western.

According to Kangas, Nat Moore and Langord discovered iron ore on Colby Hill in Bessemer around 1884-85. He said that Colby Hill has been recognized as where the first shipment of iron ore came out of the region. After the discovery, he said the Wisconsin Central Railroad built the depot in Bessemer and there were two to three passenger trains coming in and out of the city per day.

“There’s a lot of history here,” said Kangas.

According to Kangas, there are not many pictures of the Bessemer train depot. He said he knows of only three images.

Fundraising for the trailhead continues. The commission has sold 29 small bricks and 14 large bricks for a total of approximately $3,500, Loper said.

In total, the city has been given $6,600 dollars as well as a promise of $10,000 in sponsorships and donations, said Loper.

“We still have a lot of irons in the fires that I’m optimistic about,” she said. “It just takes time when you are asking for significant donations. So even though this month wasn’t super productive financially, I feel like we are still in a decent place.”

The commission had planned on fundraising by purchasing a booth at Pumpkinfest. However, now that that is canceled. They are considering a fundraising dinner at the VFW.

Loper said she is looking into another grant opportunity for the project that is being offered through the Economic Development Authority. The grant would require less of a match, but she believes it has an earlier deadline of Jan. 31, 2022. The DNR deadline is April 1, 2022. The EDA grant requires a 20% match, whereas the DNR requires a 26% match. This would mean that the commission would only need to raise $70,500 instead of nearly $92,000, but in a much shorter timespan.

“It is a federal program and they like never deal with tourism, but with all the ARPA (American Rescue Plan Aid) money coming down, they are like, ‘Oh, I guess we have to deal with tourism, too,’” said Loper. “So this is very much new territory for them.”

She said that there are a lot of things that would be required for the EDA grant that are not required for the DNR and vice versa. The EDA grant would not require as much on environmental sustainability, Loper said. It cares more about the economics and that it would help bring people off the trail and into the downtown, she said.

The commission would have to get an economic impact study done for the EDA grant. However, Loper said the Western U.P. Planning and Development Region planner has “generously” offered to cover most of the costs of the study. She said that the commission would be responsible for $500.

If the city is awarded the EDA grant, construction could begin in 2022, whereas construction for the trailhead with the DNR grant approval would not begin until 2023, said Loper. She said that the city can apply for the DNR grant repeatedly, but the EDA grant is only once.

“They just seem to have gotten a lot of funding and are trying to figure out how to spend it,” said Loper.

She said that although the EDA grant is national she believes the funding is allocated by state.