GRAND MARAIS -- It has been nearly three weeks since construction crews began placing thousands of tons of rock into the south end of Grand Marais Harbor, but now a new problem has cropped up.
The Army Corps of Engineers is working to bolster the current dilapidated breakwater, but it has suspended that project indefinitely.
"It appears we got ahead of ourselves a little bit, and I wanted to suspend that process to ensure that we give this project the correct level of review and the right look before we move forward," explained Lieutenant Colonel Mike Derosier of the Army Corps of Engineers.
Burt Township Supervisor Jack Hubbard has spent almost six years jumping through state and federal hoops to get funding for a new breakwater, and this latest delay has him furious.
"I'm extremely frustrated," exclaimed Hubbard. "If they're not going to do that project, we have to figure out what we're going to do here to have some integrity on this end of the structure."
Despite the setback, however, Hubbard is trying to stay upbeat.
"Sometimes you look at it and laugh. Other times you look at it, and you have tears running down your face," Hubbard reflected. "I put my heart and soul into this project; I worked really hard on it. It wasn't something that was easy to do, and many people in the community feel the same way. They all stood behind me. A lot of people worked on this project."
The completed breakwater will create a refuge for boaters and swimmers, potentially boosting tourism in the area.
For now, the community of Grand Marais eagerly awaits to bridge the divide later this summer.
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