City To Break Ground On DECC Seawall-Waterfront Reconstruction

DULUTH, Minn. — The summer season has past and so has another delay in a major seawall-waterfront reconstruction project behind the DECC.  But, FOX 21 confirmed Thursday that construction is officially getting underway later this month.

Rendering of what the area will look like come 2025

Jim Filby Williams, the city’s director of public administration, said all federal and state funding are now in place for the $18 million project to begin, which includes 4% funding from the city of Duluth.

“This project is going to elevate the kind of experience the visitors and residents have back here to equal the downtown Lakewalk. It’s going to be gorgeous, accessible, benches, landscaping. When you travel from the Lakewalk to Bayfront, there will now be this lovely intermediate experience,” Filby Williams said.

The original plan was to remove Harbor Drive, but because of the rising steel costs that added up to an additional $7 million to get the job done, the traffic lanes were returned, but will be much narrower.

“The project does establish this as a distinct amazing Duluth place that will enable the city, our private partners and our DECC partners to program and hold events in this space in a way that hasn’t been possible to date,” Filby Williams said.

Construction is expected to wrap up in the first quarter of 2025, which means the 2024 cruise season will be forced to dock in the bay and shuttle guests to lane by smaller boats.

The city is expected to hold a press event on the groundbreaking the week of Oct. 16.