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Staff updates: Oldman Park fields near completion; habitat projects and donations noted
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Summary
Staff reported construction progress at Oldman Park, habitat-restoration work along the Cottage Grove Trailway Corridor, planting setbacks and site assessments at Still Ponds Park; the commission also accepted donations for memorial benches and reported awards/partnerships on Mississippi Dunes Park projects.
Parks staff provided a series of project updates during the Sept. 8 meeting covering active construction, habitat-restoration work and recent donations.
Oldman Park: Staff reported that the first two athletic fields at Oldman Park were graded and the third field was nearing grading completion. Drain tiles and irrigation mains have been installed; contractors expect the site to be mostly finished by October, after which turf will be established and the fields rested the following year. A natural timber playground and a picnic shelter awarded by the city council are scheduled for installation this fall.
Cottage Grove Trailway Corridor Habitat Restoration: Staff said restoration work between Imperial Avenue and Hinton Avenue has advanced but that large piles of removed timber could not be burned as planned, frustrating neighbors. The project's first prairie seeding was completed about a month earlier and initial germination has been observed.
Still Ponds Park: Staff shared a conservation-district/DNR forestry assessment that described portions of a red-pine plantation as degraded and recommended removing lower-quality zones (purple on the map) while saving other areas (pink). The recommendation was to restore wetland and prairie habitat consistent with surrounding oak forest and wetland features; staff said this would be the topic of future discussions before removal occurs.
Mississippi Dunes Park and fishing access: Staff reiterated that the boat-launch access and parking are high priorities for the Mississippi Dunes Park grant application and that Minnesota DNR Fisheries has committed funding for a fishing pier; staff are seeking complementary funding sources to avoid using the entire 3M request for those items.
Donations: The commission recorded donations for a memorial bench at Hamlet Park's boardwalk (Olson Memorial Trail) and another bench at Highlands Park in memory of a longtime community member. Staff has installed new bench pads and said more pads are available for future memorial donations.
Why it matters: These updates outline near-term construction milestones for athletic fields, habitat-restoration sequencing and public-access priorities for waterfront parks. They indicate what projects may be ready for public use in the months ahead and which will require further funding or approvals.
