Advisory Commission Meeting Minutes October 14, 2025

Quarterly Public Meeting
Village of Calumet

October 14, 2025

Commissioners

Present:

• Karin Cooper, Houghton County (Secretary)

• Thomas Helppi, Calumet Township

• Gerald Juntunen, Commissioner, at-large (Vice President)

• Andrew Ranville, Village of Calumet

• Dan Jamison, at-large (Treasurer)

Absent:

• Glenn Anderson, State of Michigan (President)

• Mary Sears, Franklin and Quincy Townships

Executive Director

Present:

• Sean Gohman

National Park Service (NPS)

Absent:

• Wendy Davis, Superintendent (Due to government shutdown)

Decisions and Announcements

• Held board elections and re-elected current positions to continue in their roles.

• In lieu of the government shutdown and NPS staff being on furlough, NPS was not able to take part in he meeting and thus, truncated the agenda and reporting portions of the meeting.

A.1. Call to Order

A regular meeting of the Keweenaw National Historical Park Advisory Commission was opened at 1:05 p.m., Tuesday, October 14, 2025.

A.2. Introductions

Guests:

• Vince Kanthak, Painesdale Mine & Shaft

• Karen Hintz, Keweenaw County Historical Society

• Adrienne Detanico, Isle Royale and Keweenaw Parks Association

• Gina Nicolas, Keweenaw Outdoor Recreation Coalition

A.3. Approval of Agenda for October 14, 2025

• Motion made by Ranville to amend minutes to include board elections under B. Business, and to approve minutes. Seconded by Cooper. Motion carried unanimously. (5/0).

A.4. Approval of Meeting Minutes from July 22, 2025

• Motion made by Cooper to amend minutes by including “Quarterly Meeting” to the heading of these official meeting minutes and all subsequent going forward. Seconded by Jamison. Motion carried unanimously. (5/0).

B.1. Superintendent’s Report

In lieu of the government shutdown and NPS staff being on furlough, NPS was not able to take part in the meeting.

Questions for the Superintendent:

N/A

B. 2. Executive Director’s Report

Commission Funding

• The commission’s full authorized funding limit ($250,000) has been reached and is in our accounts. $100k minimum is dedicated to our day-to-day operations, with the remainder dedicated to various projects in partnership with the national park and/or heritage sites.

Quincy Smelter Updates

• Three art pieces were installed in the reverb and engine house buildings. Another at the entrance to the site.

• Working with Kasy Koski on developing a larger installation at the site for next year.

• More natural light has been installed at the site over the summer.

• Haunted Smelter event put on by QMHA and MTU Visual and Performing Arts for October 23-25. Tickets can be purchased on the QMHA website.

FY25 Planned and Proposed Projects

• Working with the park’s Interp team to develop a Heritage Site “guidebook” for sale in the Visitor Center or other gift shops. No hard date on completion or format yet.

  • Heritage sites will be asked to provide info for inclusion.

• Smelter safeing projects TBD are funding but not put in place as of yet for the spring. More to come...

Travel Updates

• I attended the State Historic Preservation Office info session in Marquette last month. This was to gather input for their soon to be updated State Historic Preservation Plan. They update this every 8-10 years and it sets the tone for SHPO’s efforts in historic preservation.

Staffing

• The park has a new Facilities Supervisor. Robert Maxon is on staff but has yet to move into the office building due to the ongoing government shutdown.

B.3. Requests to Commission and Financial Reports

A. Budget/Finance

• Motion to approve billing in the amount of $3,415.17 made by Cooper and seconded by Helppi. Motion carried unanimously. (5/0)

• Motion to approve payroll and tax payments in the amount of $18,106.35 made by Cooper and seconded by Ranville. Motion carried unanimously. (5/0)

B.4. Requests to Commission

None.

B.5. Commissioner Reports

A. Ranville, speaking on behalf of the Village of Calumet.

• The Bring Back Calumet committee hired Alexis Dahl to make a video about the Ruppe Block project and Bring Back Calumet’s involvement in that historic building’s preservation. The video is available on YouTube and has helped the committee raise additional funds towards the building’s saving.

B. Jamison, speaking on behalf of the Calumet Theatre

• The Theatre hosted a sold out fundraising show for The Omega House last weekend.

C. Juntunen

• Recently attended (and was impressed by) the Calumet 150th Anniversary celebrations and block party last month.

D. Helppi, speaking on behalf of the Township of Calumet

• The Depot building in Calumet is undergoing rehabilitation work, while another historic warehouse building was recently purchased and is also undergoing rehab work for commercial reuse.

C.1. Comments from legislators or legislative staff

None

C.2. Comments from Keweenaw Heritage Site representatives

A. Vince Kanthak, Painesdale Mine & Shaft

• Visitation is estimated to be between 25-20% over last. New members have increased the number of tours available and people on hand for duties on site. Kanthak thanked the Commission and National Park for their assistance over the years.

B. Tom Burns, Keweenaw County Historical Society

• TAll KCHS sites are now closed for the winter. The summer tourist season saw an estimated increase in visitation of 17%, with 11,000 paid visitors to the Eagle Harbor Lighthouse alone.

C.3. Comments from the public

None.

D. Motion to Adjourn

Moved by Jamison and seconded by Cooper at 1:28 p.m. Motion carried unanimously. (5/0).

Next public meeting to be held Tuesday, January 13, 2026. Will take place at 1:00pm at Keweenaw NHP Headquarters regardless of date.