Council weighs Lake Links Trail route as White Bear Yacht Club objects; residents to be consulted

The Dellwood City Council reviewed the Lake Links Trail report on Nov. 12 and heard that the White Bear Yacht Club is firmly opposed to routing the trail along the easterly side of Highway 244 adjacent to the club’s golf house facility.

Julie Whitaker and Dr. Phoebe Leonard told the council that residents expected to have been asked for comment and urged the city to reach out; Council Member Greg Boosalis agreed that residents should be engaged. John Carr of the Lake Links Trail Association said he was not certain that a formal survey of the Highway 244 ROW exists; City Attorney Richard Copeland said he has been attempting to obtain survey data for years and that earlier route maps appeared to be based largely on aerial photos. The minutes note that one survey of the White Bear Yacht Club/J.P. Potter properties shows the ROW of Highway 244 to be 33 feet in width.

Council members asked who would be responsible for long-term maintenance of any trail; the planner previously stated the City would not maintain a trail. Ed McCarthy said he is not in favor of locating the trail on Highway 244 and suggested it should be located elsewhere. To collect resident input, the council discussed forming a citizens' committee to organize a town-meeting style discussion; Boosalis agreed to work with Whitaker and Dr. Leonard on outreach. Clerk Joel Holstad will prepare a proposed notice to be posted on the City website, and the council instructed that the published agenda for future meetings be expanded to fully describe the trail issues to be addressed.

Next steps: the city will post notice and form a citizens' committee to gather Dellwood-only resident feedback before choosing a preferred route.