Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area Management Plan Amendment Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Division of Parks and Recreation July 2005 Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area Management Plan Amendment State of Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Division of Parks and Recreation This management plan has been prepared as required by 2004 Minnesota Laws Chapter 86A.09, Subdivision 1. For more information on this management plan please contact any of the following project participants from the DNR Division of Parks and Recreation: Steve Weber, Park Manager Cuyuna Country SRA PO Box 404 Ironton, MN 56455 (218) 546-5926 Jim Willford, Regional Manager DNR Division of Parks and Recreation Paul Maurer, Regional Park 1201 E Highway 2, Operations Supervisor Grand Rapids, MN 55744 Ted Sheppard, Regional Naturalist (218) 327-4150 Courtland Nelson, Director DNR Division of Parks and Recreation Patricia Arndt, Planning, MIS and 500 Lafayette Road Public Affairs Manager St. Paul, Minnesota 55155-4039 Carmelita Nelson, Park Planner Senior (651) 296-9223 Copyright 2005 State of Minnesota, Department of Natural Resources. Printed on recycled paper containing a minimum of 30% post-consumer waste and soy based ink. This information is available in an alternative format upon request by calling (651) 2966157 (Metro Area) or (888) MINNDNR (MN Toll Free). TTY: (651) 296-5484 (Metro Area) or (800) 657-3929 (toll free TTY). Equal opportunity to participate in and benefit from programs of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is available to all individuals regardless of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, status with regard to public assistance, age sexual orientation or disability. Discrimination inquiries should be sent to Minnesota DNR, 500 Lafayette Road, St. Paul, MN 55155; or the Equal opportunity Office, Department of the Interior, Washington, DC 20240. TABLE OF CONTENTS PURPOSE 1 DESCRIPTION 2 NATURAL AND CULTURAL RESOURCES 3 Resource Recommendations 5 RECREATIONAL USE & VISITOR SERVICES 6 Recreation Management Objectives 7 Campground Recommendations 7 STATE RECREATION AREA BOUNDARY 8 Proposed Boundary Modifications 9 MANAGEMENT PLAN TEXT REVISIONS 12 PUBLIC REVIEW 13 APPENDIX 14 PURPOSE This Management Plan Amendment has been prepared as required by 2004 Minnesota Statutes Chapter 86A.09, Subdivision 1. The following documents amends the Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area Management plan, adopted by the Department of Natural Resources in 1995. Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area (SRA) provides a range of recreational opportunities in a historically and geologically significant area. The recreation area is situated in Crow Wing County and is characterized by a chain of natural and mine pit lakes surrounded by second growth forest. As one of only six state recreation areas managed by the DNR Division of Parks and Recreation and one of its newest properties, land and recreation are important questions for the future of Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area. Citizens at the management plan amendment open house were supportive of the boundary modifications. Boundary changes need to be approved by the Minnesota State Legislature. The DNR will only support a boundary change with the written consent of the landowners. To meet visitor demands, the state recreation area will be operating the newly acquired Portsmouth Campground. Other major recommendations include working with various organizations to construct the Cuyuna Lakes State Trail that will eventually connect Brainerd and Aitkin. A connection will need to be made with the campground area. During the planning process, the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT) was conducting reviews of the Cuyuna Lakes State Trail alignment through the recreation area. In a letter to the State Historic Preservation Office, Mn/DOT identified a new area, encompassing most of the recreation area and beyond, as being eligible for nomination as a historic landscape district. Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area has an experienced, knowledgeable and dedicated management team that is committed to efficiently and innovatively managing the resources, working with neighbors and neighboring communities, and serving recreational users. The following amendment presents background information for the recommended campground and trail development, and boundary changes. At the end of each section there are recommended actions. This plan provides the basic management direction for the recreation area and is not intended to provide specific management or development details. It will be necessary for the DNR to seek legislation for the boundary changes, funding to complete land acquisition, and trail and facility development. 1 DESCRIPTION In 1981, the Iron Range Resource and Rehabilitation Board (IRRRB) requested that an advisory committee be formed to improve the appearance and the recreational use of the Cuyuna Range abandoned mining area. The Cuyuna Range Mineland Reclamation Committee was formed and completed many projects including: public water accesses, campgrounds, channels, overlooks, annual clean-up events, and trout stocking. The committee realized that the mineland area was a very unique resource and should be preserved. They then formed the Cuyuna Range Mineland Recreation Area Joint Powers Board (or Mineland Joint Powers Board) in 1988. The purpose of this board was to formulate plans for the area to protect it from uncontrolled and unplanned development through the adoption of zoning ordinances, formation of a plan for continued recreational use of the area, donation, purchase or lease of critical lands in the public interest, and sound management of the public lands. By this time, the mining companies no longer owned most of the area. In meetings held with state park personnel, it was recommended that the area be dedicated as a state recreation area rather than a state park because it could accommodate more intensive recreational use and attract visitors from beyond the local area. Senator Don Samuelson and Representative Kris Hasskamp organized the required legislative action. Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area (CCSRA) was established in 1993 by the state legislature (Laws of Minnesota for 1993, Chap. 172, Sec. 34). The recreation area is approximately 5,000 acres (including 1,600 surface water acres), with 25 miles of shoreline, 15 mine pit lakes, and six natural lakes. The legislature mandated that an advisory committee work with the DNR to develop a management plan. The Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area Advisory Board provided the direction for the first management plan that was completed in 1995. This Plan Amendment document supplements the campground, trail, and boundary sections of the management plan for Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area completed in 1995. The campground section needed to be updated due to the acquisition of the private Portsmouth Campground. The boundary chapter was updated because there have been several changes in the statutory boundary during the past three legislative sessions; with the most recent boundary change was during the 2004 session. Several more changes are proposed for the future. 2 NATURAL AND CULTURAL RESOURCES There are no archaeological sites or significant vegetation or wildlife documented in the Portsmouth campground or in the proposed boundary expansion areas. There is a historic district, an identified historic landscape district, and unique geology at Cuyuna Country SRA. Ironton Sintering Plant National Register Historic District A short distance south of the campground is the 20-acre Ironton Sintering Plant Complex, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (also known as the Cuyuna Sintering Plant). A small portion of this site comes into the campground area and along the beach; none of the structures are in the park/campground. (See attached map). The public water access is immediately south of the Sintering Plant Historic District. The Sintering Plant is on the west bank of the lake formed by the pit of the former Portsmouth Mine. The site was owned by the City of Crosby at the time of register designation. The Sintering Plant buildings are now privately owned. Several structures are being used as a warehouse or business and the remaining structures are in fair to poor condition. The sintering structure and trestle are ruins. In all there are eight structures on the Sintering Plant Site, including the trestle. The Ironton Sintering Plant was the second major beneficiation plant built in the United States and represents a process that was unique to the Cuyuna Range in Minnesota. With this process the lower grade ore could meet user specifications. The unique processing plant exemplifies the mining industry’s capacity for great technological innovation. Cuyuna Iron Range Historic Mining Landscape District In April 2003, a historic mining landscape district was identified as eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. This area has not been nominated yet, but it has been identified and considered eligible by the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT) historical archaeologist pursuant to their FHWA-delegated responsibilities for compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended (36 CRF800). Because FHWA (Federal Highway Administration) funding is being sought for the bike trail project, Mn/DOT is responsible for inspecting and making a determination on potential cultural resource impacts. The State Historic