MINNEAPOLIS – The Upper Saint Anthony Falls Lock and Dam is scheduled to open for public tours on Sunday.
The Saint Anthony Falls are the only major waterfall on the Mississippi River.
The Lock and Dam gave boats the ability to travel north of the falls, up until 2015 when the lock was closed to prevent the spread of invasive carp.
The Army Corps of Engineers owns the Lock and Dam. Now that it is scheduled to be used for tourism more than navigation, its future is in question.
“That conversation is starting to open up,” said John Anfinson, Superintendent of the Mississippi National River & Recreation Area. “Over the next year or two, we will have a big conversation in the Twin Cities about the future of the Mississippi River here.”
National Park Service officials say they’ll give daily summer tours of the lock and dam starting Sunday and going through Labor Day.
