William A. Irvin Set to Move Out of Minnesota Slip After Approval of $850,000 Budget

The addition of $250,000 to the originally budgeted amount was passed in a 7-1 vote

DULUTH, Minn.- The city’s plan to move the William A. Irvin out of the Minnesota slip is going to cost more than the city anticipated.

Monday night city councilors voted to approve the allocation of $250,000 from the city’s tourism tax revenue for the project in a 7-1 approval with one councilor absent.

Public Administration Director Jim Filby Williams clarified the use of the additional funds at the meeting. The 600 foot ship is expected to move through the slip leaving 15 inches of clearance on either side. Because of the tight squeeze and the ship’s historic value, items like tugboats and barges to help the ship get through safely are to be purchased with the newly allocated money.

Councilor Jay Fosle does not think that anything worth almost 1 million dollars is worth supporting and was the one councilor who voted against the additional 250 thousand for the project.

“I just don’t see it, and it’s just astronomical costs.”

Councilor Zack Filipovich argued that the additional funds were necessary since moving the Irvin is a part of a bigger project cleaning sediment contamination in the slip.

“In order for our downtown water front to remain vibrant and safe for people and clean for the aquatic life, this is a good thing. We’re taking the money from an appropriate funding source which is the tourism tax fund.”

The total seawall reconstruction project and contamination clean-up comes out to almost $11 million, 10 million of which coming from partners like the Environmental Protection Agency. The rest is left to Duluth with its newly approved $850 thousand.

The Irvin is set to move as early as Aug. 27, pending weather and lake behavior. The ship will then dock at Fraser shipyards in superior for a paint job and rehab work before returning to the slip in time for the 2019 tourism season.