Admin

La Pointe, WI Real Estate News

By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
3442 Big Bay Road, LaPointe, Wisconsin 54850 Madeline Island Real Estate More photos of "Murphy's Landing" Log Home on Big Bay, Madeline Island, Listed by Madeline Island Realty Murphy's Landing can best be described as a home with no compromises. Built and designed for entertaining, every room is a comfortable space. The billiard room with wet bar is a perfect example of "Murphy's Landing" elegance.  These are bedrooms you can furnish with a king bed and still have generous space.  Note the vaulted ceilings, alcoves, sliding doors to deck and ceiling fans. Another delightful large bedroom with a splendid view of Lake Superior! View of the ample kitchen and dining area demonstrates how ideal "Murphy's Landing" can be for entertaining. Not only are the living spaces comfortably furnished...
Comments 0
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
I've been honored to be interviewed twice during the past six months by Regina Ludes at the Council of Residential Speciaists (CRS) in Chicago.  Both interviews have appeared in the CRS magazine since January of this year. Read a Press Release about the two articles  in "The Residential Specialist" magazine below: March 19, 2010 - An interview with Realtor Eric Kodner of Wayzata Lakes Realty in Minnetonka, Minnesota (and Madeline Island Realty in LaPointe, Wisconsin) appears in the April issue of The Residential Specialist magazine. The Residential Specialist is published by the Council of Residential Specialists (CRS) in Chicago, with a circulation of over 50,000 readers in the real estate industry.  The Council of Residential Specialists is part of the National Association of Realtors...
Comments 5
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
On January 12th, 2010 I received a delightful surprise in the form of a phone call, informing me that I had been appointed to the National Association of REALTORS Equal Opportunity - Cultural Diversity Committee.  Former NAR President Dick Gaylord congratulated me on the appointment by telephone and the next day I learned that the announcement had been picked up by the LuxuryRealEstate.com Blog. [photo courtesy of LuxuryRealEstate.comTM] Two days later, on January 14th, I received a copy of The Residential Specialist magazine (published by the Council of Residential Specialists), containing an article by Regina Ludes that featured an interview I had given her back in late October of 2009.  The article, entitled "Letter Perfect" featured interviews with four CRS designees who promote the...
Comments 3
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
Yesterday evening, I received a cellphone call from a fellow who wanted information on one of our listings.  He was calling me from Madeline Island, using a Blackberry with Verizon service. He was having obvious trouble getting a decent cellular phone signal in downtown LaPointe.  We were able to chat for about ten or fifteen seconds and then his phone would drop the call. With his phone number displayed on my Caller ID, I figured it was worth a try to see if he could receive text messages.  And it worked!  We were able to exchange email addresses and I sent him the information he needed. Text messaging has turned out to be a boon for us in our real estate practice.  One of the biggest advantages is the fact that text messaging uses far less bandwidth than a cellphone call.  So when you...
Comments 7
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
This evening, I was delighted to receive a call from a fellow who was interested in purchasing one of our listings.  Unfortunately, he was attempting to call from a cellphone from downtown LaPointe, on Madeline Island. Our Island has poor cellular service that is almost legendary.  Unless you have Alltel local service (from Chequamegon Telephone Cooperative on the nearby mainland) or your cellular carrier is AT & T, you can expect to have problems using your cellphone on Madeline Island. I have a Blackberry World Edition phone (with Verizon service), however in this part of the world, it doesn't work very well).  On Main Street, in front of our office, I get one or two signal bars, occasionally three at best.  In various parts of town, I get zero signal bars.  I can receive incoming cal...
Comments 3
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
Madeline Island will be hosting the fifth annual "Big Ice Golf" Tournament in LaPointe, Wisconsin, on February 21. The event will take place from Noon to 4 p.m. on the 21st.  Proceeds from the event will be donated to the La Pointe Volunteer Fire Department.  Local businesses have chipped in to sponsor the nine-hole course on the Lake Superior ice.  The tournament site offers a beautiful view of the lake and the Bayfield mainland. There'll be no sand traps, no water hazards and no lugging golf clubs in the hot sun.  If you've never played golf on the ice, here's your chance to experience some unique midwinter fun!  
Comments 3
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
Google Earth is a fun and useful utility, but it's far from perfect. I found myself searching for the town of LaPointe, Wisconsin on Google Earth yesterday evening.  And depending on how you type the town's name, you get entirely different results. LaPointe is the commercial zone on Madeline Island, located at the southwestern tip of the Island.  LaPointe Township includes the entire island.  Madeline Island is one of the twenty-two Apostle Islands in western Lake Superior, situated about seventy-five miles east of the Duluth-Superior metropolitan area. There seems to be a sort of eternal debate among Islanders (and summer residents) about whether there should be a space between "La" and "Pointe".  It seems to make a difference on the Web when you're searching for our town.  I have seen...
Comments 2
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
Today, I was delighted to learn that I've been appointed to the Wisconsin REALTORS Association (WRA) Equal Housing Opportunity Committee! The purpose of our state's EOC is to monitor and evaluate "legislative, legal and regulatory trends with respect to equal opportunity in housing". The EOC works with our WRA Public Policy Committee to help craft or influence pending or proposed legislation dealing with Fair Housing issues. I feel honored to be invited to join this WRA committee.  I believe that service on association committees and boards is more than an obligation.  It's important for real estate professionals to "walk the talk" when it comes to Fair Housing and ethics issues.  And service on a committee such as this one is, for me, part of that effort.    
Comments 5
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
Here's an update on the current condition of the ice road between Bayfield, Wisconsin and Madeline Island. According to the ice road "Hotline", the road was plowed last Thursday.  I'm told the ice is now safe for cars and light trucks and the ice thickness will increase now that some of the snow has been removed from the ice surface.  Accumulating snow may have the effect of insulating the ice from the cold air above it, slowing the increase in ice thickness.  The folks who maintain the ice road make an effort to keep the ice plowed once it has grown thick enough to support vehicles. I plan to drive the ice road this coming week and I plan to upload a Flip video of that trip!
Comments 2
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
I spoke with my friend Steve McHugh (owner of the new Bell Street Gallery) around Noon today and he informed me that the "ice road" between Bayfield, Wisconsin and Madeline Island opened this morning. Steve said the ice road is currently open to "cars and light trucks".    Aft view of the windsled "Ice Angel IV" near Madeline Island   A midday call to the Windsled Transportation Hotline (715-747-5400) didn't announce the ice road opening, but the recorded message is supposed to be updated later today.  I'd strongly suggest re-checking the Windsled Hotline number before you schedule a trip across the ice in your vehicle.  You may also want to call Arnie Nelson (Nelson Construction in LaPointe) at 715-747-3300.
Comments 4
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
Winter has arrived in a big way on Madeline Island.   Approach to the ice road on Madeline Island   On New Year's Day, the Madeline Island Ferry Line made its last trip before freeze-up, slogging through the slushy passageway which threaded through the forming ice between Bayfield and La Pointe, Wisconsin.  The much-anticipated ice road is now forming across the two miles of Lake Superior that connects the mainland with the Island.  And Islanders are thrilled about it.  They see the ice road as a bonus, something that saves them from the expense of ferry (and windsled) fees. Within the past few days, the Island has received over a foot of snow.  And over the New Year's holiday, nighttime temperatures were as low as -10 F.  Now, shrouded in white, Madeline Island is settling into its win...
Comments 1
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
A recent University of Minnesota Duluth study claims that Lake Superior is a prime example of global warming and its effects. The "ice road" to Madeline Island begins to break up in Spring of each year.   According to a recent article in the Duluth News-Tribune, the Lake Superior winter ice cover has, in general, diminished over the last thirty years, with a corresponding rise in average lake water temperature.  And another study by a local Bayfield resident who researched weather data back to 1857 claims that today we are seeing an average of forty-five fewer ice-covered days in our area of Chequamegon Bay than there were in the mid-1800s.  The article goes on to send a warning about the future of the winter ice cover between Bayfield and LaPointe, suggesting (if the purported trend co...
Comments 1
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
Yesterday, the Madeline Island Ferry Line shut down service between Madeline Island and the Bayfield mainland.  Cars and trucks on the Lake Superior ice, just off the Bayfield, Wisconsin shoreline   This weekend, there will be "limited" windsled service across the two miles of Chequamegon Bay ice, with Saturday trips departing the Island at 9 am, 11:30 and 4 pm.  Saturday windsled runs will depart Bayfield at 9:15, 12:15 and 4:15 daily, for the time being [schedule subject to change]. On Sundays, the planned windsled schedule is as follows: Trips depart La Pointe at 9, Noon and 4 pm.  Trips depart Bayfield at 9:15, 12:15 and 4:15. A good, solid ice road is perhaps a week to ten days away, weather permitting.  Stay tuned and we'll try to keep you updated on the availability of ice road t...
Comments 2
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
The summer of 2009 will bring the opening of a new art gallery on Madeline Island. The Bell Street Gallery is the creation of Steve McHugh, a well-known professional photographer from Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Steve has been a Madeline Island summer resident for nearly two years now.  Steve saw one of our commercial listings, located at 807 Bell Street, this past summer.  He was able to look beyond the rustic facade and the bright red paint job that adorned the building.  Steve and his wife Mary fell in love with the location and the property's commercial potential, so they purchased the property in October of 2008. Steve has created the Bell Street Gallery Blog so that his fans may track the progress of the building remodel and his preparations for the opening of the Gallery in the summ...
Comments 6
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
Rumor has it that the Madeline Island Ferry Line may be shutting down in the next few days, in preparation for the formation of an ice road. Lake Superior at dawn, Canal Park, Duluth, Minnesota   As of this evening, the Ferry Line recorded message informs Islanders that they should move vehicles over to the Bayfield side before Tuesday, December 30.  This could be the earliest and best ice road we've seen in a couple of decades.  And the impact of the ice road on the LaPointe community is huge. During ice road season, Islanders and visitors save quite a bit on ferry fees.  Goods and people travel pretty much round the clock between the Bayfield mainland and the Island. There's no waiting for boats or for the windsled.  Life is good! Of course, the windsled will be running during the per...
Comments 5
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
It's a bit chilly here tonight. The temperature right now is 49 degrees.  The sky is clear and a low of 37 to 42 is predicted for tonight.  Today it seemed like tourists switched suddenly from t-shirts and shorts to thick sweaters and fall jackets.  A couple of guys walked into my real estate office this afternoon looking for firewood for their campsite at the State Park.  We chatted briefly about real estate prices and they took a brochure and business card with them.  I gave them a small bundle of split oak for their campfire and in return, they left me a couple bottles of Newcastle Brown Ale, a pretty fair trade. Leaves are changing here already.  It's perhaps more noticeable on the northwest side of Madeline Island, but you'll see trees aflame in red and orange along South Shore Roa...
Comments 26
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
Thanks in part to the Wisconsin State Bureau of Aeronautics, Madeline Island is receiving nearly four million dollars worth of gravel.  The Madeline Island Ferry dock is a beehive of activity, with bargeloads full of gravel for road and sanitation and airport projects being delivered daily.  Every time the crane swings from barge to the giant hopper on the ferry dock, you hear the sound of money being poured onto the Island. Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle presented the Town of La Pointe with a check for $1.2 million on August 11.  That portion came from the Bureau of Aeronautics, to pay for 21,500 tons of gravel needed for future airport projects. The Madeline Island Sanitary District will be using about 2,000 tons.  That leaves nearly 65,000 tons to be used by the Town of La Pointe over ...
Comments 3
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
On Saturday, July 19th, I attended a real estate auction on Madeline Island.  To my knowledge, this was the first time a Madeline Island residential property had ever been offered at public auction. The auction of the Campbell estate on Equaysayway Lane seemed more like a social event than a real estate liquidation.  There were approximately seventy people in attendance.  Most turned out to be spectators rather than participants. From the perspective of some who attended the auction, the result of the bidding was less than spectacular.  The highest bid received for the estate home portion of the property (valued for taxes at $1.2 Million) was just over $600,000.  A separate interior parcel brought a high bid of $72,000. My understanding is that the family had earlier stipulated a reserv...
Comments 12
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
A friend and client of mine is making a run for United States Senator from Minnesota. Attorney Priscilla Lord Faris, daughter of retired Minnesota Attorney General and Federal Court Judge Miles Lord, announced her candidacy for U. S. Senate in Minnesota on July 15.  Faris will be opposing incumbent Senator Norm Coleman and DFL-endorsed challenger Al Franken in the Senate race. Priscilla and her husband Wayne became summer residents on Madeline Island seven years ago.  I'm proud to say I sold them their Madeline Island home.  Priscilla's no rookie when it comes to political involvement.  Her family has a long history of involvement in Minnesota politics.  Among other things, she worked for the campaign of Senator Hubert Humphrey in 1968 and she has served on the Sunfish Lake, Minnesota C...
Comments 4
By Eric Kodner, CRS, Madeline Island Realty, LaPointe, WI 54850 -
(Madeline Island Realty)
VISIT OUR MADELINE ISLAND BLOG WWW.ACTIVERAIN.COM/BLOGS/MADELINEBROKER You'll find Valuable Real estate information for buyers and sellers    Up-to-date information on what's going on in La Pointe Township   Madeline Island news   Bayfield, Washburn, Ashland area updates   Weather information   Madeline Island Ferry Line schedule changes   Island special events and business promotions   Information on merchant discounts and free events   Helpful links to websites for private pilots and boaters   Winter road conditions and ice road reports   plus much more!   Browse http://activerain.com/blogs/madelinebroker and check it out!    
Comments 0