Parks system deserves expanded support

Council Chair

Peter Bell

If you ask residents of the metropolitan area – and we do ask them every year – what they treasure most about our region, the answer you’ll get most often is “our parks and trails.” By any measure, we have a system of regional parks and trails that is second to none.

This system consists of 47 regional parks, 22 regional trails and six special recreation features that attract more than 30 million visitors a year. It not only provides spaces for walking, biking, swimming and boating. It also protects and preserves irreplaceable natural features such as lakes and wetlands, hardwood forests and native prairies.

In our 2030 Regional Parks Policy Plan, which we adopted last year, members of the Metropolitan Council offer our vision for how to improve and expand the system – to identify and preserve our region’s last, best natural resources and outdoor recreation opportunities for our children and grandchildren.

When fully implemented, our plan would expand the existing park system from 52,000 acres to nearly 70,000 acres, or 35 percent. And it would increase our network of trails from the 177 miles open today to 877 miles by 2030.

“
In its first year of full operation, 7.8 million people rode the line, exceeding pre-construction estimates by 58.2 percent.
”
— Peter Bell

Our great challenge will be obtaining the resources needed to implement our plan while the lands are still available. Recognizing that regional parks must compete with many other worthy programs for state funding, I am very interested in exploring the idea of raising funds from private sources to accelerate our park acquisition efforts.

There are several models around the country from which we could learn:

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation is the nonprofit funding partner for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Since 1991, it has raised $43 million to supplement public funding of the state park system.
In San Francisco, the East Bay Regional Parks Foundation has raised $35 million since 1969 to help fund regional parks in the Bay Area.
Chicago , Boston and Calgary also have philanthropic partners that help support their park systems.

As our regional park system expands, costs for development and operations certainly will increase. We need to consider creative ways to ensure that we can continue to expand our park system in the coming years, while maintaining the parks and trails we already have.

We can leave no greater legacy to future generations than an expanded park system that preserves access to outdoor recreation and protects vital natural areas.

Peter Bell

February 2006