Perch Lake Landing closes for summer accessibility, safety upgrades

Boaters, anglers and trail users in western Duluth will lose access to Perch Lake Landing for most of the summer beginning Monday, May 11, as the city closes the parking lot, fishing pier and trail connection for a construction project aimed at making the site safer and easier to use.

The closure is expected to last until mid- to late July. During that time, crews will pave the parking lot, add stormwater management improvements and install an adaptive kayak launch, picnic facilities and a vault toilet. For families that use the landing for quick outings, the immediate effect is simple: the site will be off-limits until the work is done.

The upgrade is designed to make Perch Lake Landing more usable for people with different mobility needs while improving the site’s overall function. The city said the work builds on a $156,600 Great Lakes Restoration Initiative subgrant it received in 2024 through the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. That money supported an accessible paddle launch and dock, signage, bike racks, pedestrian bridge repairs, gravel for trail topdressing and full design for the broader landing improvements.

City records say the final design was completed in 2024, funding was secured in 2025 and construction is happening in 2026. The full package marks a turning point for a place that serves as everyday access, not just a one-time destination. When the landing reopens, the payoff will be a more functional public asset for western Duluth and nearby neighborhoods that rely on close-to-home recreation.

The landing work follows the larger Perch Lake restoration effort, which addressed habitat damage in the St. Louis River estuary. That project removed 68,000 cubic yards of sediment, installed a 12-foot by 16-foot by 183-foot concrete box culvert weighing 700 tons, and added 15,200 cubic yards of sand and gravel to create spawning habitat. A pedestrian bridge through a former railroad causeway was listed as the third and final phase of the restoration.

The Minnesota DNR describes the 12,000-acre St. Louis River Estuary as the largest freshwater estuary in North America and an international Area of Concern, part of a long-term restoration effort tied to the St. Louis River Restoration Initiative. At Perch Lake, that work has already changed the landscape below the landing; this summer’s closure is meant to make the public side of the site catch up.