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Business owner, former teacher, Duluth native among featured
The owner of Ely’s newest business took a brief break to share his story during the Tuesday Group’s “Meet New Elyites” session.
Once heavy on retirees, the popular feature at the Tuesday Group’s lunch gatherings at the Grand Ely Lodge, now most prominently features people who both live and work in the Ely area.
That was the dominating theme at this month’s meeting. It featured, among others, Michael Cascone, who owns and operates The Frisky Otter.
Cascone told the group “I’ve been working nonstop the last few weeks.”
Business has exceeded Cascone’s expectations since the restaurant and bar opened last month in the former Rockwood building on the corner of Sheridan Street and Third Avenue East.
Cascone said he expected “we may be hiring 12 employees to start,” but instead “today I hired my 49th employee.”
A previous restaurant owner, Cascone said the most Friday fish fry dinners he had ever sold was 110.
At The Frisky Otter, those numbers have been blown away.
“Last Friday we did 150 fish frys and 57 encrusted walleyes,” he said. “And all together, I think we did close to 500 entrees.”
Cascone runs The Frisky Otter with his wife Nicole, who he called “the brains of the operation” and has previous restaurant experience working on the corporate side with both Olive Garden and Ruby Tuesday’s.
The Cascones had been splitting time between Ely and Florida, where Michael owned a real estate company that specialized in dealing with professional athletes, with the Minnesota Twins among his clients.
“We were looking at purchasing a restaurant up here for years, and we were really excited to find this one,” said Cascone. “This location is fabulous. It has the parking. The kitchen is fabulous.”
He indicated that the outdoor dining area at The Frisky Otter has created about 20 additional tables and has contributed to the frenzy as the business got off the ground.
“We have to give our cooks some time off,” said Cascone, noting a decision to close on Mondays and Tuesdays. “That being said things are going fabulous.”
Robyn Keyport is relatively new to Ely, having moved to town about two years ago.
She works at both Boathouse BrewPub and Razor’s Edge and is a native of the Twin Cities.
Her connection with Ely dates back to Boundary Waters trips taken decades ago.
“I love the woods, I love the lakes, I love the camping,” she said.
Keyport taught biology and life science for 29 years, most in the Twin Cities suburb of Hastings.
She lived in Prescott, Wisconsin, and opted to move to Ely because “I had enough of teaching.”
Keyport described trips to the Twin Cities to visit children and grandchildren but added “I can’t wait to get back up here.”
“I love the small town atmosphere,” said Keyport. “I love how laid back it is and how the people are friendly to each other. It’s a wonderful place to be.”
Kari Beauclair told the audience that she and her husband Dave, both natives of Duluth, had been looking “for years and years” to move to the Ely area “We finally made it,” she said.
Both work remotely, with Kari employed by a company out of Dallas.
Kari has worked previously for Midwest Mountaineering and Patagonia, and has worked with nonprofits, helping groups including The Nature Conservancy to raise funds.
Dave is a U.S. Navy veteran with nuclear submarine experience who later worked with LTV Steel.
“The plan was we were going to move up here and then LTV Steel shut down up here so that didn’t work,” said Kari. “We kept trying and eventually we got here because we both work remotely.”
The couple has two children, with the oldest in graduate school at St. Catherine’s and the youngest at Purdue.
Their move to the Ely area has been cemented with the purchase of a home on Bear Island Lake.
“We are really excited to find community up here,” said Kari. “We enjoy hunting and fishing and canoeing and camping. And Dave’s a private pilot. We can’t tell you how happy we are to be here. We are looking forward to becoming part of this community.”
Brenna Kolstad, 32, describer herself as “a proud lesbian” who moved to Ely to be with her partner.
She grew up in Avon, located near St. Cloud, and has also lived in Missouri and Texas.
Kolstad and her partner both worked in the Twin Cities for the Target corporation and were looking for change about two years ago.
“We just both hated corporate America and we wanted to leave,” she said. “I didn’t know where I was going to go. She told me she wanted to leave her job and move to a place like Ely.”
The farthest north Kolstad has been previously was Duluth, but added “Now that I am here and have met this community, it’s been life changing.”
Kolstad loves astrology, cats, video games, spending times with loved ones and said she’s “ready to be a change maker.”
She is employed at the Grand Ely Lodge and works as a hostess in the restaurant.
Beth Chapman is currently the executive director for the Vermilion College Foundation, and her ties to the area run deep.
“My parents actually chose to move to Ely when they did a circle tour of Lake Superior 50 years ago,” said Chapman.
Born and raised in northeastern Minnesota, Chapman was privately educated by her mother, who was a teacher, and has higher education degrees in business, finance and entrepreneurship.
She described 4H “as something I’m passionate about,” and she has run several businesses as a youth and adult.
“Now I have transferred to the non-profit side and consulting,” said Chapman.
Chapman has been involved in both dog sledding and dog training and said “if it’s anything outdoors I’m probably up for it.”
Her other interests include cooking and gardening.
