Silver Bay sets ribbon cutting for multimodal trailhead center

Silver Bay will mark a $5.37 million public investment in its new Multi-Modal Trailhead Center with a ribbon cutting Thursday, May 21, at 11:00 a.m. at 109 Outer Drive. City leaders are pitching the project as more than a ceremony point: it is meant to change how traffic, trail access and visitor spending work in a city that sits at the edge of the North Shore travel corridor.

The city says the project is being developed at the rec center/ballfield site to replace an aging rec building. Funding has been secured from the State of Minnesota Legislature, the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources, the Federal Transportation Alternatives Program and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The planned center includes public meeting space, lavatories, showers, large lighted parking areas, playgrounds, picnic areas, open green space, an outdoor gathering plaza and handicap accessibility.

City planning materials say the facility will have 169 parking sites and separate access for motorized users, including ATV and snowmobile riders, and non-motorized users such as bikers and hikers. That separation is central to the project’s public-safety pitch. In the city’s work plan, officials said people heading to North Shore trails have been forced to park along roadways because there has not been enough parking, and a small lot on the northwest side of town has overflowed onto the highway.

The new center is designed to take pressure off those informal parking spots and give Silver Bay a more organized gateway for recreation traffic. City documents say the project is intended to improve safety, convenience, economic development opportunities and health, while making access easier to local amenities and businesses.

Location is a major part of the plan. The trailhead sits at the junction of the Superior National Forest Scenic Byway and the North Shore Scenic Byway, with access to the Gitchi-Gami Bike Trail, the Superior Hiking Trail, the CJ Ramstad Snowmobile/ATV trail, Black Beach Park, scenic overlooks, tennis courts and city sidewalks. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources says the Gitchi-Gami State Trail is now more than 36 miles complete and is planned as an 86-mile paved, non-motorized trail from Two Harbors to Grand Marais.

The project also arrives as Silver Bay continues to market itself as a recreation stop with a school system, library, marina and nearby access to Tettegouche State Park and Split Rock Lighthouse State Park. The League of Minnesota Cities reported in 2024 that the city had seen an influx of visitors during the COVID-19 pandemic and was pursuing several redevelopment projects; one visitor described Silver Bay as “a great, quiet small town” with “a lot to offer for recreational opportunities in the area.”

The trailhead has been in development for seven years, and city materials said it was expected to open by Memorial Day weekend. The early test will be whether it truly pulls cars off road shoulders, improves trail access and sends more foot traffic toward Silver Bay’s businesses and public spaces.