At long last, the new Bde Maka Ska pavilion is officially open.

Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board leaders, residents, and others gathered at the lakeside attraction Friday morning for a ceremonial ribbon-cutting and grand opening celebration.

The old concessions pavilion was built in 1930 but burned down in 2019. A $6.5 million project completely rebuilt and expanded the pavilion over the last 15 months, adding a restaurant, market and covered outdoor seating.

“It was a terrible day when it burned down, but in its place, we’ve created something really special,” Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board Superintendent Al Bangoura said Friday. “A more functional and a more open to more people year-round.”

The new space also has a performance stage and bathrooms that will be open year-round, and the buildings will feature Indigenous art and display naval artifacts that used to be at the lake.

Pimento Jamaican Kitchen partnered with Lola on the Lake — which ran the former concessions building before it burned down — to create a new lakeside restaurant called Pimento on the Lake. It will be open seasonally in the north building at the pavilion.

“I appreciate this asset. It is the crown jewel of the city of Minneapolis,” Louis King, owner of Lola on the Lake and Lola’s Cafe, said at the ceremony.

“We have an opportunity here to build something for generations to come,” Tomme Beevas, the chief strategic officer for Pimento Jamaican Kitchen, added.