MINNESOTA - The Trust for Public Land in Action: 2019

The Trust for Public Land in Action: 2019 C E L E B R AT I N G W HAT YO U M A D E P O S S I B L E IN MINNESOTA AND BEYOND

A letter from our Minnesota Advisory Board Chair, Karin Birkeland Every year in Minnesota, we eagerly await The Trust for Public Land’s annual ParkScore® ranking of the park systems in the U.S.’s top 100 cities.

We are enormously proud that both Minneapolis and Saint Paul have landed in the top three slots for several years running. In these two cities, 96 percent and 98 percent of the residents live within a 10-minute walk to a park. Midway Peace Park— which will open in spring 2020 in a historically underserved neighborhood of Saint Paul—will be an important new addition and is just another example of The Trust for Public Land’s work to create parks for everyone.

Our Minnesota team also protects important lands.

In 2018, we protected a record 13 special places totaling 1,458 acres and 6.5 miles of shoreline.

These landscapes not only benefit the environment, wildlife, and habitat, they also create vital new areas for residents and visitors to hike, fish, paddle, camp, and enjoy our great outdoors.

Today, more than 8 million people have access to a close-to-home public place created or protected by The Trust for Public Land, and, as a result, now have healthy, safe places to gather and play.

In the following pages, we will share additional successes, including The Trust for Public Land’s important work with local governments. In 2018, we helped the city of Brooklyn Park pass a ballot measure that will generate $26 million for parks and recreation needs. This is just one of 562 measures that The Trust for Public Land and our affiliated Action Fund have helped pass over the last two decades, generating $74 billion for parks and land conservation.

Creating parks, protecting land, and helping local governments generate funding are some of the many reasons why our work at The Trust for Public Land is so important. Please continue reading to learn more, and thank you for your partnership and support!

Karin Birkleland Minnesota Advisory Board Chair

ANDRY RICHTER

Towerside Park

Minneapolis, MN

Community-Powered Parks

Midway residents’ dream of a new park moved closer to reality when we negotiated the purchase of three parcels and conveyed them to the City of Saint Paul.

With help from donors like you, we led a private fundraising effort to assist with park development costs. We also hired six Midway residents to serve as park listeners. These park advocates spoke with their neighbors about what activities and amenities they would like to see in a new park.

This information was incorporated into the park design to ensure the park would be meaningful to and culturally representative of its primary stakeholders. Community members also selected the new park’s moniker, Midway Peace Park.

Groundbreaking is expected in fall 2019, and the park will be open to the community by summer 2020.

ANDY RICHTER

M I D W AY P E A C E PA R K To outsiders, the sign indicating “a park is coming” at a vacant lot on Griggs Street may look like a simple announcement. But to residents of Midway, the sign is years in the making and the culmination of their hard work. In 2009, students of Gordon Parks High School and residents of Skyline Tower recognized a need for a park in their neighborhood. With guidance from The Trust for Public Land, community meetings were held to generate enthusiasm and ideas for the future park.

Frogtown Park and Farms Saint Paul, MN

PA R K S C O R E ® U P D AT E Minneapolis and Saint Paul have led the nation in the annual ParkScore® rankings for six years and continued to make a strong showing in 2019.

Although Washington D.C. claimed the top spot, Saint Paul and Minneapolis continue to boast the #2 and #3 positions. We are very proud of our local park systems and look forward to working with our partners to continue elevating the quality of our parks.

ADVOCACY IN ACTION: Brooklyn Park In November 2018, we helped the community pass a $26 million park bond to fund parks investments the city needs to stay green and healthy as it grows.

The measure passed with 63 percent of residents voting YES! We’re proud to stand with the local advocates. We look forward to scaling up our conservation finance efforts in Minnesota for 2020 and 2022.

Crow Wing Forest North

MINNESOTA

Grass Lake WMA

CANADA

Gusty Island

Savanna State Forest Sissabagamah Creek

LA

MADISON

KE

WISCON SIN

Janet Johnson Memorial WMA Crystal Spring SNA MINNEAPOLIS ST PAUL

Choice WMA

Gray Fox WMA Warsaw WMA Factor WMA Trout Lily WMA

IOWA

R RIO PE SU

LA

KE

R

O

100 Miles

HU

Land owned or managed by the National Park Service

50

MICHIGAN

Other public or protected land Tribal land

0

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N

Other completed project (land protection or park development)

Project completed from July 2018 through July 2019

The Trust for Public Land

MILWAUKEE

MICHIGAN

July 25, 2019. Copyright © The Trust for Public Land. The Trust for Public Land and The Trust for Public Land logo are federally registered marks of The Trust for Public Land.

Information on this map is provided for purposes of discussion and visualization only. www.tpl.org

CO M PL E TE D P R OJ EC T S

Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Upper Michigan

NEBRASKA

AN LAKE M ICH IG

NORTH DAKOTA

SOUTH DAKOTA

Minnesota’s Rivers Did you know the Land of 10,000 Lakes is also home to more than 92,000 miles of rivers? We work with communities to protect these rivers, their access points, and the lands surrounding them so everyone can enjoy the water. In the past year, we protected 12 special places in five geographies: Mississippi Headwaters, Cannon River Watershed, Metro Big Rivers, Southeast Blufflands, and the Saint Croix Watershed.

RICHARD HAMILTON SMITH

Mississippi River Northwoods Habitat Complex Brainerd, MN

M I S S I S S I P P I H E A D W AT E R S The Mississippi River is one of the world’s greatest river systems and a source of drinking water for 18 million people. It is also home to more than 350 species of birds, fish, and wildlife, and provides recreational opportunities to thousands of people.

Because of its critical importance, we work with landowners and communities to protect sensitive lands within the Headwaters, including nearly 600 acres and 4.5 miles of shoreline in the past year.

Our land protection work often expands existing state forests, wildlife management areas, and scientific natural areas. This year we added 170 acres to the Savanna State Forest with approximately 1.25 miles of undeveloped frontage on the Mississippi River. For generations to come, visitors will be able to explore the forest, walk beneath the trees, listen to the sound of the wind brushing across the wild grass meadows, and revel in the beauty of the river.

C A N N O N R I V E R W AT E R S H E D Located less than an hour’s drive south of the Twin Cities, the Cannon River Watershed (CRW) is filled with beautiful prairies, grasslands, wetlands, and viewsheds beloved by many. Over many decades, however, this region has suffered loss and fragmentation of wildlife habitat due to intensive agriculture, and increased development.

That’s why we are leading a multi-year, multipartner effort to acquire and restore key parcels of land vital to biodiversity and public hunting and fishing opportunities.

Over the last year, we protected four special places in the CRW, including the Trout Lily SNA where we preserved the habitat of the federally endangered dwarf trout lily, which can only be found in Minnesota.

ADVOCACY IN ACTION: Outdoor Heritage Fund Many of these river-oriented parcels are protected using funds from the Outdoor Heritage Fund (OHF) of the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment. The Trust for Public Land was one of the leaders behind the referral and passage of the state’s Legacy Amendment passed by Minnesota voters in 2008. The OHF enables us to restore, protect, and enhance wetlands, prairies, forests, and habitat for fish, game, and wildlife.

Forever Northwoods Sugarloaf, Superior Hiking Trail, Cook County, MN The Sugarloaf portion of this popular hiking trail is now permanently protected for hikers to enjoy! The Superior Hiking Trail Association approached The Trust for Public Land when the threat of development arose. We worked to conserve this section of the trail—which includes a campground—and permanently ensure its future.

The iconic Northwoods of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan are home to an expansive wilderness like no other in the country. Each year visitors from around the world come to experience the dense forests and glistening lakes that have dominated this region since the glaciers receded.

This year, Gusty Island became the third island conserved by The Trust for Public Land and will be managed by The Listening Point Foundation.

The island will be accessible to the public, host environmental education, and remain undeveloped.

In this chain of islands, we previously protected Long Island and Gaul Island, which are managed by the Superior National Forest and the state of Minnesota respectively. Each island was at risk of being sold for development, but thanks to the support of our donors and partners, this ecological, cultural, and historic landscape will remain open for the public to enjoy.

TRAIL NOTES The Wild and Scenic Ontonagon, Ontonagon County, MI We have been actively preserving land in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula since 1992, protecting over 41,000 acres. We are not only expanding the Ottawa National Forest, but we are also protecting a portion of the North Country Trail, which stretches 4,600 miles from New York to North Dakota.

ANDY RICHTER

THE ISLANDS OF BURNTSIDE LAKE Nestled on the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness near Ely, Burntside Lake serves as a gateway to the Boundary Waters and is home to Listening Point, author and activist Sigurd Olson’s historic retreat. Thanks to our nearly two decades of commitment to the region, the three-mile chain of islands are now permanently protected.

burntside lake Ely, MN

ADVOCACY IN ACTION: Land and Water Conservation Fund Every year our staff and volunteers travel to our nation’s capital to advocate for federal legislation to support our public lands. Thanks in part to our advocacy, the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) Permanent Funding Act was passed in April 2019 and authorizes $900 million annually for the LWCF, America’s most important land conservation program.

Minnesota Advisory Board We are so grateful for our volunteer leaders!

Karin Birkeland, Chair Andrew Brown, Vice Chair Cheryl Appeldorn Daniel L. Avchen Page Knudsen Cowles Paul Durkee Thomas Fisher Peter Gove Susan Haigh Jule Hannaford John Herman Lisa Hondros Doug Kelley

Steve King Greg McNeely Steven Meyer Timothy M. O’Brien, Ph.D. David Prince Kate Richardson Amanda Rome Andrew Rosen John Shepard Julia Silvis Marnie K. Wells Philip H. Willkie Jim Wyman

M E E T T H E M I N N E S O TA T E A M : • Rachel Baird, Midwest Institutional Giving Manager

• Kim Lawler, Minnesota Director of Philanthropy

• Will Cooksey, Sr. Land Protection Specialist

• Keeley McCall, Philanthropy Associate

• Jenna Fletcher, Program Director, CommunityPowered Parks

• Bob McGillivray, Land Protection Director

• DJ Forbes, Program Manager

• Susan Schmidt, Minnesota State Director

• Makayla Oman, Administrative Assistant

• Seema Kairam, Program Manager, CommunityPowered Parks ANDY RICHTER

Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary Saint Paul, MN

HOLLIS BENNETT

Thank you

for supporting our land-for-people mission in Minnesota and beyond.

We couldn’t do it without you.

Join us.

The Trust for Public Land creates parks and protects land for people, ensuring healthy, livable communities for generations to come.

tpl.org

Susan Schmidt Minnesota State Director 651.917.2240 | susan.schmidt@tpl.org Kim Lawler Minnesota Director of Philanthropy 651.999.5322 | kim.lawler@tpl.org 2610 University Avenue, Suite 300 Saint Paul, Minnesota 55114

COVER: TOP AND MIDDLE ROWS, ANDY RICHTER; BOTTOM PHOTO, DARCY KIEFEL.