National Loon Center plans to break ground in July 2024

Minnesota’s state bird will have a new home in Crosslake

By Tom Fraki

The National Loon Center has been an important part of the fabric of Crosslake since its founding in 2017. It is a destination for study and education on loons and their habitats, as well as freshwater conservation.

The NLC has been in its current location at Crosslake Town Square since 2021, thanks to a donation from Crosswoods Development. Now the center is looking to make a big step forward by building a standalone campus.

National Loon Center Executive Director Jon Mobeck said they hope to break ground on the new facility in July 2024, and are waiting on funding from the 2024 state bonding bill.

“We’re aiming for July at this point,” Mobeck said. “It does feel like the trade winds are blowing in our favor on that. If (the funding) is successful, then we will transition right into breaking ground.”

History

The National Loon Center originally began as an idea to improve the city and community of Crosslake, but it quickly became something much bigger over its short history.

The idea for the center first came out of a group of about 80 community participants organized by the Minnesota Design Team in 2016 to generate concepts for improving the Crosslake area.

“From that, they came up with all kinds of great ideas of different things to do. Many of them have come to fruition, but one of them was this wild idea to create a national center,” Mobeck said.

Being so closely tied to community improvement, the NLC has received a great deal of local support over the past years.

“I can say right away because of that, the Brainerd Lakes Chamber of Commerce became the biggest advocate. And they really helped to get (the center) where it is today,” he said.

Mobeck started with the National Loon Center in January 2021, the same year it moved into The Nest, its current location in Crosslake Town Square.

The National Loon Center and its programs

With the Nation Loon Center being located in the heart of lake country, it is focused on research and education regarding both loons and freshwater conservation.

“Our goal is to protect loons and freshwater habitats, and to both promote responsible recreation and encourage people to take action in protecting loons and freshwater ecosystems. So we’re trying to engender stewardship among people who love the loon and extend that love to preserving the freshwater ecosystems that are dwindling around the planet,” Mobeck said.

In its ongoing work, the National Loon Center collaborates with the University of Minnesota, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, the Northern Waters Land Trust and the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

From its 2021-2023 operating seasons, the National Loon Center has seen 167 loons banded and 132 loon territories studied.

Among its educational programs is the Share Our Shoreline program, which emphasizes the need for the natural shoreline vegetation that is necessary for loon habitats and clean lake water.

The NLC also hopes to teach visitors about the dangers associated with using lead tackle, as one in five loon deaths is due to lead

The loon center is able to bring visitors onto the lake with its StewardShip floating classroom. With this, visitors can take guided pontoon tours of Cross Lake to learn about loons in their natural habitats.

Between 2021 and 2023, the StewardShip program brought 2,000 loon pontoon passengers onto Cross Lake.

For its 2024 season, the NLC plans to expand its StewardShip program to the Gull Chain of Lakes with pontoons at Cragun’s Resort in East Gull Lake. Also new for 2024 is the first Minnesota Loons and Lakes Festival in Crosslake from Thursday-Saturday, June 20-22. The festival will feature loon-centered arts and events throughout Crosslake.

The new campus

The International Wolf Center in Ely and the National Eagle Center in Wabasha have provided a blueprint for making the National Loon Center

One of the National Loon Center’s ongoing programs is to educate about the problems associated with using lead tackle for fishing, as shown in this display at The Nest at Crosslake Town Square. Tom Fraki / Echo Journal campus a reality.

Based on figures gathered from the IWC and NEC, the National Loon Center is estimating its new facility could bring in up to 200,000 visitors annually, bringing a significant economic boost in tourism dollars to Minnesota and the Brainerd lakes area.

The National Loon Center campus will be located just west of Crosslake Town Square between Pioneer Drive and County State Aid Highway 66.

It will feature a 15,000-square-foot sustainable facility, including indoor and outdoor exhibits, a bird sanctuary, a research institute, a three-level ecosystem tower, classrooms and a portion of the property to be set aside as an untouched natural area with walkways.

The National Loon Center is working with Dimensional Innovations to create changing exhibits that look to bring visitors back more than once.

“It’s really, really cool stuff. So the interior experience will be first-class, really high-end. The purpose is to make sure there’s a heightened wow factor for anybody who enters the building, but also that there are enough interesting and changing things to make people want to come back more than once,” Mobeck said.

The NLC was waiting on a $6.5 million bonding bill request from the state to reach the campus’ $18.5 million total project cost. Mobeck said the loon center is still fundraising for up to another $2 million to go toward future exhibits.

“I do want to encourage people to know that whether you’re an individual, a foundation or a corporation, there are opportunities to put their names behind these world-class exhibits. That would help us make sure that the exhibit experience is the best it can be,” he said.

For a project of its size, Mobeck said it has been great to see such wide support for the new loon center campus.

“It’s great to have the project be so widely supported, even in terms of socioeconomics and political backgrounds. Everybody loves the National Loon Center, we’ve got some great support,” he said.

TOM FRAKI is a staff writer for the Pineandlakes Echo Journal weekly newspaper in Pequot Lakes/Pine River. He may be reached at 218-855-5863 or tom.fraki@pineandlakes.com.

Horseshoe Lake

Location: Crow Wing County, 7 miles south of Crosslake Area: 922.03 acres

Deepest point: 56 feet

Shore length: 7.62 miles

Fish species: Black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, smallmouth bass, walleye, yellow bullhead, yellow perch, golden redhorse, white sucker, banded killifish, bigmouth shiner, blackchin shiner, blacknose shiner, bluntnose minnow, central mudminnow, golden shiner, Iowa darter, Johnny darter, mimic shiner, spotfin shiner, spottail shiner.

Invasive species: Zebra mussel

Public water access: A public water access is located on the south shore of the east basin of the lake.

Interesting fact: Formerly named Sandbar Lake, about 57% of Horseshoe Lake is 15 feet deep or less.

Sources include Minnesota Department of Natural Resources LakeFinder

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