Monthly Archives: June 2010

Park Board Update

PARK BOARD UPDATE

The MPRB has a new superintendent. Former Park Board Superintendent David Fisher is returning for a four-month stint as interim superintendent while the Park Board conducts a search for a permanent superintendent. Mr. Fisher’s first day is July 1. Jon Gurban’s last day was June 30.

Sans Fanfare, Gurban Exits The Park Board

The following article by May Tobar and Cristof Traudes appeared in the June 28, 2010 issue of the Southwest Journal:

SANS FANFARE, GURBAN EXITS THE PARK BOARD

June 16 marked Superintendent Jon Gurban’s last regular meeting with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. The controversial leader is set to end his tenure June 30.

In an unusual move, Gurban did not receive special recognition at the meeting. President John Erwin said it was the superintendent’s request to keep things low key, despite Erwin’s own objections.

“Some of us had our differences,” Erwin said during a brief statement. “… But we cannot question his dedication to this system.”

Gurban, originally hired on an interim basis in 2004, put in his resignation in March. Highlights of his work include the creation of a comprehensive plan, tight budgeting and the passage of plans to fill in the decades-old gap in the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway System. However, Gurban also was dogged for much of his six years by complaints about his interaction with the general public, and whether he would be retained was a common campaign topic leading up to last fall’s election.

Former Superintendent David Fisher will step in on an interim basis for the next four months. The search for the system’s next full-time superintendent is ongoing.

Minneapolis Park Board To Purchase 10 Acres On The River!

MINNEAPOLIS PARK BOARD TO PURCHASE 10 ACRES ON THE RIVER!

The following article by Irene Jones appeared in the recent issue of the Friends of the Mississippi River online newsletter:

Last week, the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board purchased 10.2 acres of prime riverfront property from Scherer Bothers Lumber in Northeast Minneapolis. The $7.7 million purchase includes land bordered by the river to the west, 8th Avenue to the South, Sibley Street to the east and 10th Avenue (extended) to the north. MPRB closed on the property with $2.4 million in regional parks funding in place and an agreement for the remaining $5.3 million to be financed through Scherer Brothers.

Some of the property is not within the official Above the Falls Regional Park boundary. In a late-session move, the State Legislature passed a law providing an exception for the Scherer property, so that all of it would be eligible for regional parks funding. There is a possibility that the City of Minneapolis or a private developer will step in to develop the eastern half of the property. If that doesn’t happen, purchase of the site with state funds would place a covenant on the property to only allow passive park, open space and recreation activities.

The possibility of a 10-acre park on the river has many Northeast residents jazzed and enthusiastic. The new park will be a gateway to the long awaited Above the Falls Regional Park and it will foster an important connection south to the Central Riverfront Regional Park and north to a growing number of riverfront parks and trails. After several months of planning for Boom Island Park and the BF Nelson site to the south, MPRB commissioners asked staff to re-think the proposed plan, in part because of the Scherer Brothers property coming on line. Many of the local neighbors see an amazing opportunity to create a bigger and more visionary plan for the area and asked that there be further study.



Minneapolis Park Board Pays $7.7 Million For Industrial Site

MINNEAPOLIS PARK BOARD PAYS $7.7 MILLION FOR INDUSTRIAL SITE

The following article by Burl Gilyard was published in the June 11, 2010 issue of Finance & Commerce:

The Minneapolis Park Board closed a big real estate deal this week. The board is paying $7.7 million for approximately 11 acres of riverfront land in northeast Minneapolis from Scherer Brothers Lumber Co.


The deal, which closed Wednesday, clears the way for converting the site from a long-standing industrial use to new city parkland. The park board originally hammered out a purchase agreement with Scherer Brothers last year.

“I think it’s just an incredible addition to the system. It’s really significant,” said John Erwin, president of the Minneapolis Park Board.

The Park Board has pulled together several sources of money to pay for the site, including $1.7 million from the Metropolitan Council’s Regional Park Acquisition Opportunity Fund and $700,000 that the Park Board received when some parkland was condemned for the new Interstate 35W bridge.

The board has a $5.3 million mortgage with Scherer Brothers. But the board will be seeking state money to pay the note from the Parks and Trails fund created under the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment passed by voters in 2008.

Erwin notes that the bulk of the money is coming from regional and state sources, not local property tax dollars.

The site is close to two existing city parks, Boom Island and B.F. Nelson Park.

“We have two other sites adjacent to it on the other side of the Plymouth Avenue Bridge,” Erwin said. “We’re likely going to develop a master plan for the whole three- park area and treat them as a single park. It will allow us to make a legacy park in northeast Minneapolis, where there hasn’t been one.”

The Scherer Brothers site includes several parcels between Eighth Avenue Northeast and 10th Avenue Northeast along the Minneapolis riverfront. The Graco plant is immediately to the north; B.F. Nelson Park is to the south.

What’s not known yet is the cost of converting the site, which includes several buildings, into a park. Erwin acknowledged that it would be a multi-phase project unfolding over years.

“We don’t have all of the estimates in. We know that there will be costs, we’re hoping that they’re not significant,” Erwin said.

“What we’re going to try to do is get the bike and walking paths done as quickly as possible along the river’s edge,” Erwin said.

Scherer Brothers is retaining some land on the site. The total site measures nearly 14 acres.

“This has been a large missing puzzle piece. It will enable us to reconnect nature and the river,” said state Rep. Diane Loeffler (DFL-Minneapolis), who represents the area at the legislature.

“It will be awhile before we see the redevelopment because it will take awhile to do the planning,” Loeffler said. “It was a lumber yard. It was a lot of parking and a lot of lumber used in their business.”

Ultimately, Erwin said, the goal is to have an iconic feature or attraction for the new park.

“We’re going to want to look at what can we put there that will be unique to the whole city,” Erwin said.

Citizens Committee to Advise On Brownie Lake

The following article by Cristof Traudes was published in the June 14, 2010 issue of the Southwest Journal:

CITIZENS COMMITTEE TO ADVISE ON BROWNIE LAKE

The future of the smallest member of the Chain of Lakes is expected to be revisited soon by a citizen group.


file photo

Brownie Lake is the smallest member of the Chain of Lakes. A citizens’ advisory committee will consider ways to improve its accessibility.

The Park Board will vote June 16 on the formation of a citizens’ advisory committee for a Brownie Lake Area Plan. The group will advise board staff on the creation of schematics for the 18-acre lake, covering issues such as trails and connections, environmental improvements, recreation and maintenance. In particular, the committee will weigh in on ways to make the lake more accessible.

Hidden beneath a brush of trees at the edge of a dipped prairie, Brownie is one of the more secret natural locations in Minneapolis. It’s notable for what it is — peaceful and rustic — but more notable for what it isn’t — surrounded by parkways, traffic or people. Its shoreline is just a fifth of a mile long.

While lakes Calhoun and Harriet regularly are brushed up with new amenities, the biggest changes at Brownie over the past decade have been a buckthorn removal, the addition of wood chips to its surrounding trail and the installation of a small canoe rack. The Park Board now is interested in bringing the trail up to current standards.

The 15-member committee is expected to be filled with appointments from six parks commissioners, a Metropolitan Council member, a City Council member, Mayor R.T. Rybak, three neighborhood boards, the Cedar Lake Park Association, Target Corp. and Golden Valley Mayor Linda Loomis.

Tentatively, the committee’s work will be completed at year’s end, followed by design and engineering in early 2011. Lower trail work would be completed in 2012 and an on-street bike trail would be done in 2013.

M P R B June 16 Regular Meeting

HEADS-UP FOR THE JUNE 16, 2010 PARK BOARD MEETING

5:00 P.M. REGULAR BOARD MEETING followed by committee meetings. Some of the topics on the agenda are:

The approval of the Brownie Lake Citizens’ Advisory Committee (CAC).

The approval of the concept for a Northern Chinese Garden at Washburn Fair Oaks Park as well as fundraising efforts. The Planning Committee staff report is at minneapolisparks.org/documents/meetings/agendas/uploaded06-16-10planning.pdf (pdf)

The 2011 Budget Study Session I. The Administration and Finance Committee staff report is at minneapolisparks.org/documents/meetings/agendas/uploaded06-16-10Admin.pdf (pdf)

5:30 P.M. OPEN TIME.

6:30 P.M. There will be a Public Hearing on Wirth Lake Phase III Improvements. The Planning Committee staff report is at minneapolisparks.org/documents/meetings/agendas/uploaded06-16-10planning.pdf (pdf)

The meeting will be held in the boardroom at Park Board headquarters, 2117 West River Road next to Broadway Pizza.

MPRB meetings are broadcast live from 5-8 p.m. on the City of Minneapolis Government Meeting Channel 79 on Comcast cable and online at www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/webcasts.

The regular meetings are rebroadcast on Channel 79 at 1 p.m. Saturdays and 5 p.m. on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month. Webcasts for the recent two months are posted two to five business days after the meeting and are available for viewing under “Webcast Archives” at the web site.

The complete agenda is at minneapolisparks.org/default.asp?PageID=37&calid=647 on the Park Board’s website under “Upcoming Meetings.”

Arlene Fried, Co-founder of Park Watch

Heads-Up for the June 16, 2010 Park Board Meeting

HEADS-UP FOR THE JUNE 16, 2010 PARK BOARD MEETING

5:00 P.M. REGULAR BOARD MEETING followed by committee meetings. Some of the topics on the agenda are:

The approval of the Brownie Lake Citizens’ Advisory Committee (CAC). The Regular Meeting agenda has the staff report at minneapolisparks.org/default.asp?PageID=37&calid=647

The approval of the concept for a Northern Chinese Garden at Washburn Fair Oaks Park as well as fundraising efforts. The Planning Committee staff report is at minneapolisparks.org/documents/meetings/agendas/uploaded06-16-10planning.pdf (pdf)

The 2011 Budget Study Session I. The Administration and Finance Committee staff report is at minneapolisparks.org/documents/meetings/agendas/uploaded06-16-10Admin.pdf (pdf)

5:30 P.M. OPEN TIME.

6:30 P.M. There will be a Public Hearing on Wirth Lake Phase III Improvements. The Planning Committee staff report is at minneapolisparks.org/documents/meetings/agendas/uploaded06-16-10planning.pdf (pdf)

The meeting will be held in the boardroom at Park Board headquarters, 2117 West River Road next to Broadway Pizza.

MPRB meetings are broadcast live from 5-8 p.m. on the City of Minneapolis Government Meeting Channel 79 on Comcast cable and online at www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/webcasts.

The regular meetings are rebroadcast on Channel 79 at 1 p.m. Saturdays and 5 p.m. on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month. Webcasts for the recent two months are posted two to five business days after the meeting and are available for viewing under “Webcast Archives” at the web site.

The complete agenda is at minneapolisparks.org/default.asp?PageID=37&calid=647 on the Park Board’s website under “Upcoming Meetings.”

Arlene Fried, Co-founder of Park Watch

June 9, 2010 Committee Of The Whole Meeting

HEADS UP FOR THE JUNE 9, 2010 COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING

There will be an extra Park Board meeting on Wednesday, June 9 at 5:00 P.M. The meeting will be held in the Minnehaha Room at Park Board headquarters, 2117 West River Road. It will not be televised or broadcast, but it is open to the public. The study topic is “Commissioner Revenue Initiatives.”

Here’s the link to the agenda:

www.minneapolisparks.org/default.asp?PageID=37&calid=648

Arlene Fried, Co-founder of Park Watch

Heads Up for the June 9 M P R B Committee of the Whole Meeting

HEADS UP FOR THE JUNE 9, 2010 COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE MEETING

There will be an extra Park Board meeting on Wednesday, June 9 at 5:00 P.M. The meeting will be held in the Minnehaha Room at Park Board headquarters, 2117 West River Road. It will not be televised or broadcast, but it is open to the public. The study topic is “Commissioner Revenue Initiatives.”

Here’s the link to the agenda:

www.minneapolisparks.org/default.asp?PageID=37&calid=648

Arlene Fried, Co-founder of Park Watch

System Grows By 14 Acres On Unanimous Board Vote

The following article by Cristof Traudes was published in the May 31, 2010 issue of the Southwest Journal:

SYSTEM GROWS BY 14 ACRES ON UNANIMOUS BOARD VOTE

On a 9–0 vote, the Park Board approved purchasing most of a Mississippi River-bordering lumberyard long owned by the Scherer Bros. Lumber Company. The 14-acre site, which borders Boom Island and B.F. Nelson Park, adds to a string of land the board wants to redevelop into a Northeast destination park.

The purchased land ended up being somewhat smaller than originally proposed. Portions deemed non-essential for parks were cut out, Planning Director Judd Rietkerk said. That took the total price tag down to about $8 million.

The board already made a $400,000 earnest money down payment in December.

To cover the remaining cost, the board is receiving a $1.7 million grant from the Metropolitan Council. The Park Board also successfully lobbied the Legislature to allow the use of money commonly designated for parks and trails.

Several commissioners said they were shuddering at the price tag, but they also said the site’s potential trumped their hesitations. President John Erwin said it had been 30 years since the land was last up for sale.

“We really want this, and I’m glad we have this opportunity,” said Northeast Commissioner Liz Wielinski, who later voted with “a resounding yes.”