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Residents urge board to halt trailhead parking plan, cite safety, trees and transparency concerns
Summary
Multiple village residents told the board they oppose a proposed trailhead parking lot, raising petitions, concerns about tree removal and dust, and saying the public has not been given adequate information about scope and cost.
Residents of the village told the Caledonia Community Schools board on May 19 they oppose a proposed trailhead parking project that would add parking near a community trailhead, saying the plan lacks transparency, would remove trees and could harm trail users.
Multiple speakers said they collected more than 100 petition signatures opposing the plan and asked the board to delay any action until the village and district provide clearer project objectives, costs and environmental information. One resident said he had received the DNR application only recently and that village leaders had not made full documentation available when decisions were being discussed.
Steve Furberstein (also pronounced Fejerstein), speaking for village opponents, said the project’s stated purpose — to serve village merchants — would directly benefit only about 10 downtown businesses while the community at large and students who use the trail would face more traffic and reduced safety. “There are approximately 10 merchants who may be served by this proposal,” Furberstein said, and residents “do not know what the requirements are. One of the most frustrating things is the nonexistent transparency and communications from everybody involved.”
Resident Jeffrey Kuzmira told the board he had only just received the DNR application package and described a lack of timely public notice. He said the package indicates a plan for about 23 parking spaces and questioned why that level of investment was necessary for a village with many side streets and several businesses that already have private parking.
Sylvia Murphy, another resident, told trustees she worried the parking layout would remove roughly 60 trees in the trailhead area and increase dust pollution from a nearby grain elevator. Murphy said the existing trees act as a filter and help reduce dust in surrounding neighborhoods; she also said a walled parking lot could create a place where crimes might occur out of public view.
Speakers asked whether the proposed parking improves student safety, citing school users of the trail, and urged the board and village council to share the project’s cost breakdown and purpose before authorizing work. Several residents said they intended to file a formal objection to the DNR application.
Board President acknowledged the public comments and indicated the board would not take immediate action until it received further information from the village council. Administrators confirmed that the village’s DNR application and additional documentation would be needed before the district made any decisions affecting school-owned property.
Protests and petitions remain active, and several residents asked the district to schedule a dedicated agenda item or special meeting so the public and trustees could examine the documents together.
