Two Harbors

Two Harbors, Minnesota


Two Harbors (pop. 3565 in 2004), on the north shore of Lake Superior, is a small, friendly town with big city conveniences. Located 20 miles northeast of Duluth, the scenic community has an active port with Great Lakes freighters taking on iron ore and taconite pellets bound for eastern steel mills.

Major industries include the five "Ts"-timber, taconite, tourism, transportation and technology-but there are many economic opportunities for companies of all sorts. A great school system, modern hospital and clinic, easy highway and rail access and a municipal airport help make Two Harbors a competitive location. It also offers 15 acres of tax-free JOBZ commercial industrial property to entice new and expanding businesses.

To find more about Two Harbors with regards to area business, recreation, housing/lodging, dining and events see the Chamber of Commerce site.

Additional limited information exists on the web on City Government, work force, industries, real estate, infrastructure, development incentives and quality of life.

Northeast Sustainable Development Partnership's Tourism Resource Team Report Two Harbors, 2005.
(2.4 MB pdf) A document that investigates sustainable development in Two Harbors based on tourism. Includes ideas on greening areas and making the diverted Skunk Creek into a park and to have enhanced stormwater treatment through infiltration improvements along the creek.

Two Harbors Environment

  •   History
    • Timeline
      An interactive History Timeline for Lake County and Two Harbors Minnesota. Brief descriptions and historic images appear after clicking on a timeline date revealing important events of the region.
    • Environmental History of Two Harbors
      Begins with a discussion of the area's geology, passes on to history and impacts of the area's natural resource based industry and ends with discussion of Two Harbors popularity for tourists today and its associated impacts of development.
  •   Two Harbors Regional Development and the Environment
    • Building Requirements in Lake County (795 KB pdf)
      An on-line brochure that provides information for landowners thinking about building or retrofitting a building in Lake County in which the City of Two Harbors is located. Information provided includes contact information and covers such areas as required setbacks from shorelines, riparian assets and roads; building near wetlands and sewage and potable water requirements.
    • Soil Disturbance in Lake County (22 KB pdf)
      Conditions requiring a soil disturbance permit are outlined in this one page fact sheet. Soil disturbances associated with Lake Superior shores, other shorelines, wetlands and riparian systems are addressed.
    • Lake County Local Water Management Plan (2005) (130 KB pdf)
    • Sample Erosion and Sediment Control Plan (27 KB pdf)
      for development/construction within Lake County
    • MN SeaGrant story
      about recent development issues in Two Harbors region and their impact on Skunk Creek watershed, with some mention of the approaches used to reduce flow problems in Skunk Creek.
  •   Photos

Stormwater Information

Contact Local Decision Makers

Elected Officials
Agencies
Regional Stormwater Protection Team 		     

Public Health and other Environmental Information
  •   Public and Environmental Health
    • Source Water Assessment for Two Harbors (2002) (218 KB pdf)
      is a document required under the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. The assessment was carried out under the auspices of the Minnesota Department of Health and provides: 1) a general description of the area which supplies water to the Two Harbors water utility; 2) an overview of why this water supply is susceptible to potential contaminants; 3) a description of the contaminants of concern which may impact water quality; and 4) to the extent practical, the origins of these contaminants.
    • Tap Water Quality
      for the community is available as a detailed report that lists individual pollutants; these in turn can be individually clicked to find information on potential sources of pollutant, a health impact summary, a testing summary and a violation summary. Further information on permissible levels and summaries of state and national hot spots for the particular pollutant can be called up also. More detailed information is also available in the drinking water and wastewater sections of our website.
    • Minnesota Lake Superior Beach Monitoring Program
      Provides water quality information based on indicator bacteria (fecal coliform and E. coli) concentrations for Minnesota's public Lake Superior beaches. Tabs at top of the home page provide additional information on the monitoring program, the science behind the program and advice on how to help prevent beach contamination. Includes a novel mapping utility to "see" the sampling sites and their current data and a unique data visualization tool for viewing the data over time or comparing it to other sites and other measurements. For specific beaches in the Two Harbor area go to:
  •   Maps, Demography, Climate
    • Interactive Map of Two Harbors
    • Demographic Information about the city and its services, its people and its climate.
    • Weather Report that includes current conditions, 5 day forecast, radar based weather maps, astronomical information (e.g. moon phase and times of sunrise and sunset)