Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board

[mattaudio]

This has been used for generations, and parking suddenly became an urgent problem how exactly?

[grant1simons2]

Woah guys. Lets take it a bit easier. I can see how it might become a newer problem with it becoming more known and more people going there. People I talk to from Mound even know about it and go there, it used to just be a Minneapolis thing. So it's growing, and maybe we need to fix that problem. But then again so has Lake Calhoun and they get by with parking they've had for a couple decades too. I think what needs to happen is some serious studying of this beach during the winter and for a plan to be released in the spring or summer of next year. Could it involve parking? Maybe. But more importantly we need to make this beach accommodate everyone.

[Anondson]

My post above became a blog post.

https://streets.mn/2014/08/26/a-new-mead ... onal-park/

I have to say, I love editors. Just passing some love to the streets.mn editorial peeps.

[kirby96]

It seems to me that if we are to seriously consider closing city parks due to crime problems, Hidden Beach should probably be about 10th on the list. It's an absurd suggestion.

[grant1simons2]

No one is seriously considering it

[David Greene]

No one is seriously considering it

That's not what I hear.

[David Greene]

My post above became a blog post.

https://streets.mn/2014/08/26/a-new-mead ... onal-park/

Excellent job! I also sledded and skied Meadowbrook regularly growing up. Where did you live?

I can't take on leading another campaign right now but if you or someone else wants to take the lead in organizing an effort to push this, I will be the first foot soldier to sign up!

[grant1simons2]

The old retirees want it to be closed but you can't close the beach, it used to be illegal and if you close it people will still go. The city will not want to close a beach, they'll think differently. I will be there to testify against the neighbors who want to close it. My idea is to make it more family friendly, have trash pick up, a woodchip trail and maybe someone watching the beach. Not like a lifegaurd, but more of a cop or guard watching to see if anything illegal pops up.

[Anondson]

Excellent job! I also sledded and skied Meadowbrook regularly growing up. Where did you live?

I grew up in the Brookside neighborhood of St. Louis Park (just to the east of the golf course). Great little neighborhood with a something of a commercial node, my heart is still broken from when the Brookside Drugstore closed. That "existing trail" in the Edina section of the "park" on the map I drew we as kids walked down to and explored countless hours in the woods around it, never knowing what it was from the old street car line. Edina has today built a more official access through the woods out to it from the adjacent city park, but I can't express how awesome it was for us kids to have a place free of adults.

[fehler]

They can close beaches. They are closing Lake Hiawatha beach, planting the shore with tall grass/wetlands. It's just too close to Nokomis, and too often closed due to E. coli to bother with trying to hire/pay for lifeguards.

[Anondson]

Hopefully Lake Hiawatha gets cleaner when MCWD is done with its rehab work in Hopkins in a few years.

[Anondson]

Park Board says they are heading into budget short falls that threaten upkeep and repair or the parks and facilities.

http://www.startribune.com/politics/sta ... 24231.html

To that I say, get more residents (who then pay taxes). Anytime a neighborhood bitches about some proposal being too big, keep this issue in mind. We need people to help pay for what the city has.

I could also use this moment to flog the Meadowbrook Regional Park proposal of mine *cough* as a way of offloading the money pit of the flood damaged golf course with the Met Council paying for some of the cost of adding it to the regional parks ... Oh, I guess I just did.

[mattaudio]

Just a reminder that the Nokomis-Hiawatha Regional Park Master Plan comment period ends Dec. 22.
http://www.minneapolisparks.org/default.asp?PageID=1475

I've been to a few meetings of this, and have a few suggestions for comments ranging from the mundane to the detailed.

- Consider a position advocating removal of Cedar Ave Bridge (this has already been shot down by MPRB staff, but many residents are friendly to the issue. It's setting the stage for decades from now when we'd need to waste money replacing a costly bridge over a nub of a lake for the third time).

- As an interim plan until the creek is re-meandered and pathways are realigned, put a 3-way stop at 22nd Ave S and Minnehaha Pkwy. This would reduce wait times for motorists (there's no queue space for left turns) and it would reduce potential conflicts with bicyclists on the trail.

- Create ad-hoc activity space (mowed grass) on the west side of the Hiawatha GC fence near where the tennis courts used to be (44th-45th Sts along Longfellow).

- Ensure a complete traffic study - that values safety over speed and capacity - is completed before changes are made such as a new connector between Edgewater and West Nokomis Pkwy, and disconnecting Edgewater at Cedar (Fat Lorenzo's corner).

[Anondson]

Tuesday, Jan. 13 from 6-7:30 pm at MPRB Administrative Offices, 2117 West River Road, Minneapolis the park board will hold a meeting to layout the future of Meadowbrook and Hiawatha golf courses.

http://minneapolisparks.org/default.asp ... calid=1283

Focus will be partly on how federal funds can be tapped.

I'd love to try and make it, I doubt I can. Thought I'd mention this in case anyone CAN make it to advocate at least considering something other than golfing, like, you know, a new regional park?

https://streets.mn/2014/08/26/a-new-mead ... onal-park/

[seanrichardryan]

On the same note:

http://www.startribune.com/local/minnea ... 03801.html

HOW TO BE HEARD
Here are opportunities to find out more about and opine on three park master plan proposals for Wirth, Nokomis-Hiawatha and St. Anthony Falls regional parks in Minneapolis:
Wirth: The deadline for public comments online or by mail is Friday. View the plan at: tinyurl.com/ou388gd
Nokomis-Hiawatha: Public comments are being taken through Monday. View the plan at: tinyurl.com/o2kob2j
St. Anthony Falls: Comments are being taken through Jan. 18. View the plan at: tinyurl.com/ppymcop
What’s next: Public hearings for all three plans are likely to be held in February or March before the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board.

[Anondson]

Made it. Whoa. Standing room only at the Hiawatha and Meadowbrook meeting.

[Anondson]

Lots of riled up golf league folks. Many many Meadowbrook fans there, neighbors of the course seem to have been led to believe that course was fated to be developed as Section 8 housing. Not kidding.

The golf course architect hired to evaluate the cost of the damage came up with $2.02MM damage at Meadowbrook and $1.49MM damage for Hiawatha, this was submitted to FEMA and FEMA will counter with their estimate now (hasn't yet).

The people speaking for the golf courses department of the Park System said there is absolutely zero intention towards shutting down ether course, the only plan they are going forward with are to reopen each course. There MAY be an opportunity to include non-golf uses in the future, but the golf department has no plan to suggest shutting either course because of the damage.

FEMA will only pay for the damage, they will not play for any improvements. Improvements like future flood prevention, plus FEMA money is a one-time amount. If it floods again they will refuse to pay to fix flood damage again, so flood prevention must come from "other" sources. FEMA will also not offer to pay to improve either course, like smoothing out rolling greens even in flood damaged areas. Just putting in grass, replacing flood-killed trees. Everything that is simply beyond replanting grass and vegetation must be paid for from local sources.

These courses will be closed through 2015 and 2016, May reopen in 2017. But could worst case not reopen for golf play until 2018.

I have a hunch that because this was put on by the golf department of the Parks system, they had no inclination to do anything other than their mission. Run golf courses. My hunch is that though the golf folks will advocate full golf restoration, the Park Board may easily balk at the price of doing this and may look at alternatives not discussed.

Not sure where the Park Board would come up with the Millions of $$ to restore the golf courses above FEMA's offering since they are in such a budget crunch now.

[John21]

Meadowbrook, Hiawatha golf courses won't reopen until 2017

[Anondson]

This went out to neighbors and folks who signed up for updates on Hiawatha and Meadowbrook.

The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) is hosting back-to-back idea gathering meetings for Hiawatha and Meadowbrook Golf Courses. We have heard from community members that both Meadowbrook and Hiawatha Golf Courses are highly important assets. We welcome your insight as we look beyond flooding repair to what could be. Please come ready with big ideas for the courses and their nearby parklands. There are separate meetings for each course. Come to one or come to both!

Place: MPRB Board Room
2117 West River Road North, Minneapolis, MN 55411

Time: 6:00pm to 7:30pm - Focus on Hiawatha Golf Course
7:30pm to 9:00pm - Focus on Meadowbrook Golf Course

Date: Monday, February 2, 2015

Para más información en Español sobre el progreso del proyecto, por favor de llamar al 612-230-6573.
Wixii warbixin afsoomaali ah ee ku saabsan mashruucan, fadlan wac 612-230-6574.

For more information on Hiawatha Golf Course, please go to the project page or to http://www.minneapolisparks.org/currentprojects..., then select Hiawatha Golf Course Improvements
For more information on Meadowbrook Golf Course, please go to the project page or to http://www.minneapolisparks.org/currentprojects..., then select Meadowbrook Golf Course Improvements

Contact:
Tyler Pederson, Landscape Architect
Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board
[email protected]
612-499-9084

I'm not giving up hope that something can be done to make them more than just golf. There is a lot of non-golf space at Meadowbrook, some rearranging of the holes and I think you could run some trails around it and build out some Boardwalk around Lake Meadowbrook.

[Anondson]

I attended the ideas forum for these. I'm worried too many people aren't aware how deeply golf is dipping in popularity, and that "boosting junior opportunities" isn't enough to stop the bleeding. I'm not a golfer, so maybe there are real opportunities to improve the courses that would actually improve revenue... But I'm deeply skeptical it's possible. At all.

We'll see if the park board will push in the millions it will need for both courses when budgets are this tight, and now possibly tighter after Dayton's budget cutting.