A pivot away from traditional Minnesota Governor's Fishing Opener is at hand

Two months from now when Minnesotans celebrate the year's biggest day of fishing, Gov. Tim Walz will be sure to wet a line to mark Opening Day.

But according to officials at Explore Minnesota and the Department of Natural Resources, the weekend of May 14-15 will pass without the special fanfare that has defined the Governor's Fishing Opener for decades.

The extent of the regression wasn't known Thursday because officials still were scrambling to make plans, but Nicole Lalum, coordinator of the Governor's Fishing Opener, told the Explore Minnesota Tourism Council on March 10 that organizers will be "considerably scaling back certain elements of the event due to ongoing concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic.''

In interviews with the Star Tribune this week, Lalum and two DNR officials confirmed that the event will be downsized. "The governor is going fishing … we are marking the event,'' DNR Fish and Wildlife Division Director Dave Olfelt said. "But it's going to be different.''

Mark Holsten, executive director of MN-FISH Sportfishing Foundation & Coalition, said the downgrade has been noted in recent conversations with MN-FISH board members "as a point of interest, frustration and bewilderment.''

Holsten, a former DNR commissioner, said the sentiments relate to doubts that state's observance of the fishing opener this year will be equal to its importance. The iconic statewide pastime enjoyed by kids and adults generates nearly $300 million in direct general tax revenue. In addition, the DNR receives millions of dollars in annual fishing license receipts raised from 1.4 million anglers.

"Minnesota's fishing opener is like apple pie and motherhood,'' said Tom Neustrom, a prominent fishing guide from Grand Rapids. "No other state is like ours. It's a huge event … absolutely insane.''

Lalum said Thursday that an announcement about this year's fishing opener will be made very soon.

"It will be different this year but it definitely is being planned,'' she said.

Resort owners are among the curious. "Like others, we await word about how this year's event might be organized and promoted,'' said Hospitality Minnesota President and chief executive Liz Rammer.

DNR spokeswoman Gail Nosek said the Governor's Fishing Opener "will take a more geographically dispersed, hybrid approach.'' She said it will "celebrate fishing in a variety of ways, rather than focusing on a single host community.''

At last year's Governor's Fishing Opener in Otter Tail County, people protested against Walz for COVID-related mandates. He fished early in the morning, then departed before the 8 a.m. opening ceremony. Officials said he returned to St. Paul for "legislative negotiations,'' but House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt told reporters he didn't know of any negotiations.

Claire Lancaster, press secretary for Walz, said planning for this year's fishing opener has no connection to a year ago. "Last year's fishing opener was a success,'' Lancaster said. "Protests happen all the time.''

The first Governor's Fishing Opener was celebrated in 1948. According to the Minnesota Historical Society, that's when the Minneapolis Tribune offered the first in-depth statewide coverage of Opening Day. Gov. Luther Youngdahl often is credited for holding the event, but probably didn't attend. According to the historical society, attendance by governors picked up in the 1950s and solidified in the early 1960s.

In modern times under the direction of Explore Minnesota, the DNR and the governor's office, the Governor's Fishing Opener has traditionally been hosted by an individual community to honor and celebrate the importance of tourism, fishing and outdoor recreation. Typically, the process begins more than a year in advance with bids solicited from competing communities. But in late 2020, Lalum said, there were too many uncertainties surrounding the pandemic for the state to start early bidding for the 2022 opener. Otter Tail County was selected to host the 2020 event, then shifted to host the 2021 opener due to cancellation.

Olfelt said state officials attempted to stir up bids for 2022 last summer. But under the shortened timetable, no one stepped up.

"Everybody's exhausted,'' Olfelt said. "There's no oompf for it right now'' among potential host communities.

Over the past few months, Olfelt said, agencies have been working on "different kinds of ideas'' for the governor's opener. State Tourism Director Lauren Bennett McGinty and DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen have been directly involved.

"The Governor's Fishing Opener remains a really important thing,'' Olfelt said. "We're not stepping away from it.''

Megan Christianson, executive director of Visit Grand Rapids, said she received an e-mail early last month from Explore Minnesota asking if Grand Rapids could host a "very pared down version'' of the governor's opener.

"We declined because we don't have the resources,'' Christianson said.

Pat Mutter, executive director of Visit Winona, said she, too, received the inquiry. But by the time she responded that her community was willing to host, the agency told her that "it was just too late'' and they were going in a new direction.

Christianson said Minnesota might be at a crossroads for the way it celebrates fishing and hunting openers. Even when the lead time is 18 months, communities are questioning if the substantial volunteer effort and fund-raising needed to host a lofty civic party is worth the payoff in tourism and marketing exposure.

When Grand Rapids hosted the Governor's Fishing Opener in 2011, organizers tapped 200 volunteers, organized a fleet of at least 70 guest boats, and raised enough money to feed and serve 3,000 people.

"The resources available now are just too scarce,'' Christianson said. "The tradition will go on … but the way and manner in which it does is going to look different.''

Nick Leonard, an Otter Tail County resort owner involved in the 2021 Governor's Fishing Opener, echoed Christianson. The budget for Otter Tail's event exceeded $80,000 and required extensive contingency planning, he said.

But even before the pandemic, he said, "it was getting harder and harder to get communities to do this.'' Communities are starting to question if there are better ways to spend $80,000 to promote local tourism, Leonard said.

Lalum of Explore Minnesota acknowledged that "it's a heavy lift'' for a community to host the Governor's Fishing Opener. Planning for the 2023 event already is under way, she said. To gauge interest among potential host communities, the state will issue a request for proposals later this spring, she said.