A large crowd gathered in the Great Lakes this weekend for the dedication of a pier named for former Congressman and local businessman Berley Bedell, who died in December. A statue of Bedell stands next to the pier. Tom Bedell, his son, said it’s a fitting tribute.
“He grew up here and for him to be stationed right there is the place he would most want to be in the whole world,” Bedell said.
Berkley Bedell founded a company in Spirit Lake that made fishing lures and he was instrumental in a fundraising campaign to save Arnolds Park, the local amusement park. Tom Bedell said that planted the seeds for lakefront re-development.
“The investment that’s gone in here which is multiples of that $7 million would just reaffirm to him that you start with a dream, you live it and you grow another dream…and this is where we are,” Tom Bedell said. “It’s fantastic.”
The pier that is now named for Berkley Bedell has recently been renovated. It’s along the boardwalk and includes a water fountain and concrete benches.
(Reporting by Matt McWilliams, KICD, Spencer)