With meeting facilities and catering for groups ranging from a small gathering to 400 persons, the Grand Portage Lodge and Casino is the cornerstone of the reservation's economic growth.

The adage that a rising tide lifts all boats is certainly true on the Grand Portage Reservation. Just over 20 years ago, Grand Portage was one of the first Minnesota reservations to become involved in tribal gaming. Since then, the Grand Portage Lodge and Casino has become one of the North Shore’s most popular destinations and an economic catalyst for the reservation and Cook County.

Reservation leaders reinvest the enterprise’s profits into the community—improving the quality of life for reservation members and providing employment for workers from Thunder Bay to Grand Marais. With about 380 employees, the Grand Portage Reservation is Cook County’s largest employer. Tribal chair Norman Deschampe says folks who get a job on the reservation know they have stable, year-round work—and health insurance.

“We provide 100 percent health insurance with no deductable,” Deschampe says. “It’s expensive, but we care about health care. We use some of our profits to offset health care costs.”

Casino profits are also used to pay for higher education opportunities for reservation members and their descendants, as well as educational and community programs on the reservation. A new kindergarten through Grade 6 charter school on the reservation has about 30 students. It is located in the Community Center, which also has a swimming pool, a children’s “paddle pool,” a hot tub and sauna, a gym and fitness center, a teen center, a senior center with dining facilities and a library with computers and Internet access.

Other new facilities include the daycare and Head Start center, opened in 2009, a four-year-old Tribal Council Building and the five-year-old Grand Portage Trading Post, where a new car wash opened this year. Grand Portage owns nearby Hollow Rock Resort, which has five lakeside units for rent. The reservation is also partnering with the state at the Grand Portage State Park, where a new visitor center is opening this year. The new Grand Portage National Monument visitor center, operated by the National Park Service, recalls the fur trade era 300 years ago, when Grand Portage was a major hub for trading activities.

Grand Portage is clearly on a roll, but it hasn’t always been that way. Prior to construction of the casino, employment opportunities were limited. Now Grand Portage actively seeks workers. At a recent Grand Marais job fair, the reservation sought to fill about 30 positions. An Arrowhead Transit bus shuttles workers daily from Grand Marais. The reservation also employs 60 to 80 First Nations people from Ontario, many of whom moved to Thunder Bay from remote northern villages. In addition, the reservation employs some foreign workers as well.

“We have a hard time finding enough employees,” Deschampe said.

Grand Portage’s proximity to the Thunder Bay metropolitan area provides a year-round source of customers for the lodge and casino. It is also a popular destination for North Shore travelers from the Twin Cities and elsewhere. Add in summer activities ranging from sight-seeing to embarking for Isle Royale and, in winter, a popular snowmobile trail system, and a steady stream of visitors make their way to Grand Portage.

“There’s really no break for us, we’re busy year-round with activities and events,” says marketing manager Frank Vecchio. “The state park will now be open year-round as well and offer naturalist programs.”

The rising tide of economic development at Grand Portage provides benefits to all of Cook County. Deschampe says it also allows the reservation to participate in and support the broader county community. He has been encouraged by the a new spirit of countywide cooperation shown by the the recently formed Cook County Visitors Bureau and would like to see more cooperative efforts between local communities.

“What each of us does affects everyone,” Deschampe said.

Inside Grand Portage Lodge

Frank Vecchio is Grand Portage's marketing director.

Grand Portage Lodge has meeting and banquet facilities capable of hosting small and large groups. Catering services can handle meals for up to 400 people. Three large conference rooms can be interconnected by removing divider walls. Each room has speaker systems and state-of-the-art plasma screens. Smaller meeting rooms are also available.

“Not everyone is aware that we are capable of hosting large functions,” Vecchio said. “We’re trying to do more meetings and banquets.”

The lodge has undergone recent renovations. The dining room and lobby were renovated three years ago and new floors are currently being installed. Rooms were refurbished two years ago. A standard room includes two queen-size beds. Lakeside suites have two rooms with a bar, a king-size bed, a fireplace and a two-person jacuzzi, and adjoin a standard room, allowing families with kids or other small groups to stay together while having elbow room and privacy.