Friends of the Parks and Trails of St. Paul and Ramsey County

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A Short History of the Friends of the Parks and Trails

Friends of the Parks and Trails of St. Paul and Ramsey County is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation for the public support and appreciation of parks and trails.

Executive Director
Peggy Lynch, 651-698-4543; peggylynch@qwest.net

Board Officers
President: Jeanne Weigum; jw@ansrmn.org
Vice President: Neil Franey
Treasurer: James R. Bricher

Board Members
Duke Addicks
Char Brooker
Mark Davis
Trudy Dunham
Thomas T. Dwight
Dr. William Frank
Bonnie Grzeskowiak
Steve Hauser
Michelle Hoffman
Marilyn Lundberg
Robert Nethercut
Mark Nolan
Scott Ramsay
Pierre Regnier
Kathleen Stack
Cynthia Wheeler

Director Emeritus

David Lilly
Truman W. Porter

Ex Offico

Dan Breva; Trails and Waterways Metro Division, DNR
Marc Goess; MN Dept. of Transportation
Greg Mack, Director, Parks and Recreation; Ramsey County
Kevin Nelson, St. Paul Public Works
Terry Noonan, Environmental Services Manager; Ramsey Cty. Public Works
Bob Bierrscheid, Director Parks and Recreation; St. Paul

HOW THE FRIENDS BEGAN

In 1984 developers proposed building housing units in the middle of Hidden Falls - Crosby Lake Regional Park. A group of citizens banded together to protect this marvelous park. When the housing proposal was defeated, the group continued to meet. The St. Paul Foundation provided startup funding, via a grant, to establish a permanent organization in 1985.

TWENTY YEARS OF PROGRESS

The following year the Friends initiated a study of the St. Paul and Ramsey County park systems "A Plan for Parks, Trails, and Open Space". This major effort led to the establishment of Park Commissions in St. Paul and Ramsey County and the amendment of the City of St. Paul and Ramsey County charters for "no net loss" of parkland. This study continues to be a seminal visionary document in park, trail and open space planning and management. Today the Friends has grown to hundreds of members and its tree sales have added thousands of trees to the parks in St. Paul, Ramsey County and the Ramsey County Suburbs. The following are some of the Friends other accomplishments during our first twenty years:

Led efforts for the Gateway Trail connection to downtown St. Paul.
Restored five and one half miles of Mississippi River bluffs to ecological health.
Sponsored a City of St. Paul ordinance setting up a process if park lands or facilities are leased.
Advocacy group in conjunction with McKnight Foundation on the Save Open Space project for the Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant (TCAAP) area.
Led the effort to have MNDOT build a pedestrian/bicycle tunnel under the ramps for I-35E as the new I-35E bridge was built.
Worked with Metro Airport Commission to assure wetland mitigation was completed at Pickeral Lake to compensate for filling at the Downtown Airport.
Prepared and published a Park Directory for all public lands within Ramsey County.

VISION OF THE FRIENDS

The Friends of the Parks and Trails of St. Paul and Ramsey County are dedicated to being a key community voice in the environmentally responsible development and use of local parks, trails and open space.

MISSION OF THE FRIENDS

To promote public support and appreciation for parks and open space
To help shape goals and priorities of park development
To identify, protect and enhance environmentally significant areas
To promote establishment and development of quality parks, trails and bikeways
To provide a vehicle for citizens to influence public policies that affect parks, trails and open space