ONAMIA, Minn. – The newly redeveloped Eddy's Resort on Lake Mille Lacs is marketing the past in order to move into the future.
With plaid, faux weathered walls and midcentury modern furnishings, the 64-room hotel and restaurant opened this week for the first time since the $10 million yearlong project kicked off last summer.
It's the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe's first ground-up hospitality project since opening Grand Casino Hinckley in 1992 and its latest effort to diversify revenue beyond gambling.
"When our corporate ventures do good, we all do good. It means we can provide the services to our people," said Melanie Benjamin, the band's chief executive.
Eddy's, a Mille Lacs fixture since the 1960s, is recognized for its bright, red-trimmed launch boats ferrying eager anglers among all the fishing hot spots.
Eddy Silker, who built the resort, was a pioneer on the lake. He loved fishing and founded the resort based on that passion. Each summer he would take visitors out to catch their prize, and each winter he built up and repaired his fleet. Silker long ago left the business but was on-site for the grand reopening this week.
"It was a wonderful life," said Silker, who turned 75 this week. "I didn't even know I was working."
He said that he's pleased with the new resort.