Akeley City Council

Community

Welcome to Akeley!

BY MAYOR

BRIAN HITCHCOCK

On behalf of the citizens of Akeley, I would like to welcome you to “the birthplace of Paul Bunyan.”

Akeley started out as a boomtown for the logging industry and has gone through many changes over the years. We are currently a town consisting of 432 people, located on the southern edge of the Paul Bunyan State Forest, in the heart of lake country.

We have the Heartland State trail running through the center of town that provides access to miles of bicycle, ATV and snowmobiling trails.

Akeley is home to one of the largest statues of Paul Bunyan in the world and has visitors stopping by all the time to have their picture taken with him. We hope that you will have the opportunity to stop by our town and see all that Akeley has to offer.

Akeley City Council

The Akeley City Council meets the second Wednesday of each month at 6 p.m. at Akeley City Hall on 25 Broadway Street.

The mayor is Brian Hitchcock. Council members are Bobbie Wosika, Billy Krotzer, Dan Riggs and Nathan George.

The city owns and operates an on- and off-sale municipal liquor store, known by locals as “the muni.”It is located on

State Hwy. 34, just a block from the Paul Bunyan Statue. For information about city government, call city hall at 218-652-2465 or go to akeleycity.com.

DEPARTMENT MANAGERS

City Clerk/Treasurer........ Kristi Kath..................................................... akeleych@arvig.net Akeley Police Chief .......... Jimmy Hansen............ 218-652-4440, jimmyz802@yahoo.com Liquor Store Manager ..... Lacey Hitchcock....218-652-4084, akeleyliquorstore@arvig.net

Brian Hitchcock Dan Riggs Bobbie Wosika Nathan George Billy Krotzer

Akeley city campground

The city-owned campground is one of Akeley’s hidden gems. Located dockside on 11th Crow Wing Lake, reservations are usually made well in advance of the busy summer.

For more information on rates and availability, call the park manager at 218-252-4570 or go to www.akeleycitycampground.com. There is also a public beach, playground, fishing pier and boat access near the campground.

Jimmy Hansen serves as Akeley Police Chief

Jimmy Hansen has been Akeley’s Police Chief for more than 10 years. He received his training in Alexandria.

“We have a family-oriented town and try to keep it safe for children,” he said. “Even though the Akeley Police Department is small, we center most of our activity on drug interdiction, on drugs coming through our town. We concentrate on that and have other law enforcement assisting also.”

Hansen and his wife have four children. In his free time, he enjoys collecting classic vehicles.

“I love being in the middle of God’s country,” he said. “I work where everybody from the metro wants to come.”

Hansen said he is looking forward to the emergency shelter opening in the Akeley Regional Community Center. “As both a board member and the chief of police, I’m looking forward to assisting victims of domestic violence,” he said.

Hansen welcomes community input about issues of concerns to Akeley residents. Call him at the city office 218-652-4440.