Master Site Plan

We know our community is excited to see what’s happening at camp, so we will share updates via this dynamic web page. Please check back often!

Last updated: March 2026

Clearwater is currently completing our master site plan, an ambitious plan to update and upgrade our 100+ year old campus for the benefit of our campers today and well into the next century!

Clearwater’s capital improvement planning began in 2018 when the board engaged the community, campers, and staff to determine what was needed to optimize the camper experience. Many of Clearwater’s facilities were originally built in 1912 as the Pottawattamie Lodge to accommodate Camp Minocqua families and became Clearwater’s camp buildings in 1938. Clearwater’s community has been generous in ensuring proper maintenance of these buildings and grounds over time. However, we are now executing an ambitious, comprehensive effort to update and upgrade so that we can:

• ensure safety while meeting the needs of today’s campers, 
• remain faithful to camp’s beauty, history, and traditions, and
• continue to fulfill Clearwater’s mission and vision.

Each “portage” (AKA phase or project) of the master site plan is becoming a reality through the generosity of our community in a special fundraising effort to secure approximately $6.6 million through our capital campaign, The Bond that Binds Us: Building Clearwater’s Future

Through March 13, 2026, we have secured $5.35 million (or 81% of the $6.6 million capital goal) and completed the first two portages of the plan.

Funding from our community has made it possible for Clearwater to complete construction around summer camp operations and the harsh winter weather of the Northwoods. The work is being expertly guided by the board’s site plan and facilities committee, Blake Theisen, architect and principal of Parkitecture + Planning, and general contractor, Jimmy Rein, owner of Lee Construction Company. In addition, Sarah Palmer, lead designer, Cozy Red Couch Designs provided expertise in furnishing Mainstay.

This map provides a basic overview of the entire master site plan and below you can read more details about each portage.

Portage One

(launched in Spring 2023 and completed in June 2024)

• Backstay (new Maintenance Building) 
• Mainstay (new Welcome & Wellness Center, including a new storm shelter)
• Sport Courts
• Expanded Outdoor Activity Spaces

Read about this portage’s completion in our July 2024 Site Plan Sparks!

Portage Two: New Staff Housing

(launched in Fall 2024 and completed in May 2025)

Over 120 donors responded to a special $150,000 challenge issued by one of our long-time donors to complete two of the anticipated four new staff cabins in Portage #2.  This is a vital need for camp because offering more comfortable and family-friendly housing options enables us to fill crucial leadership positions that require specialized skills, knowledge, and broader life experience. Having seasoned staff members in senior positions will provide even more opportunities for mentorship and guidance for our younger generations of counselors which will elevate the camp experience for all. Read more about the launch of this portage in our Site Plan Sparks. In summer 2025, senior staff lived in these new cabins and brought excellent experience and skills that were invaluable to making camp so successful and fun. We will build additional staff housing as we secure more capital funds.

Final Portages

An additional $3.6 million in capital funding is required to complete the master site plan projects listed below. We plan to celebrate our success in updating facilities and grounds with all of you in 2028 at our 95th Reunion.

As of Friday, March 13, 2026, we have secured over $2.3 million (64% of the $3.6 million required) toward this final capital fundraising goal. We invite all members of our community to join the Bond That Binds Us Capital Campaign with a donation that will be doubled by a generous donor who will match all gifts up to $500,000.

In addition, all donors who make a capital gift before camp ends on August 6th will become members of the Coffee Cake Club in honor of Clearwater’s famous Sunday coffee cake. Stay tuned for more perks, but just know, if you come to see our upgraded dining hall on a Sunday, we will have some delicious coffee cake waiting for you fresh from our brand-new ovens! Maybe you can even request which coffee cake recipe you prefer!

Portage Three: Mains’l – Dining Hall Expansion & Kitchen Re-build

One of our oldest buildings, Mains’l, was built in 1912 as part of Dr. Sprague’s Pottawattamie Lodge for parents of boys attending Camp Minocqua. It became Clearwater’s dining hall and kitchen when the camp moved from Clear Lake to its current location in 1937. We gather here three times a day for meals and often for rainy day activities. This well-loved building needs an upgrade to last an additional 114 years! This portage will include:

• Expanding the Mains’l (the dining hall) so that campers and staff have more room to comfortably eat, enjoy one another’s company, and continue traditional after-meal singing! This will include adding a porch and additional mainland bathrooms.
• Re-building and expanding the early 1900’s kitchen to modern standards, as well as to ensure safety and longevity as the wear and tear of so many years has taken a toll.
• Shoring up the area between Mains’l and the Deck, creating new activity space.

After campers leave August 7th this summer, we will begin moving furniture and furnishings out of Mains’l so that construction can begin as soon as possible. This is necessary to have every minute of good weather between camp seasons to have our upgraded Mains’l ready for campers when they return in June 2027.

Here are some of the plans for Mains’l from Parkitecture + Planning:

Additional Master Site Plan Projects to be completed before 2028:

• More Staff Cabins
• Bathrooms at the new sport courts
• Wetlands Classroom
• Shoreline Erosion Control
• Island Storm Shelter Upgrade

Join us at a virtual town hall on March 18, 2026 to learn more.

To learn more details about the plan, please choose one of the buttons below, or contact our Development and Communications Director, Sheila Ferguson via sheila@clearwatercamp.org or by calling her at 901-830-7896.