[CPEO-BIF] St. Paul (MN) railyards to park

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

Off The Tracks


The new nature sanctuary offers natural habitats close to downtown St. 
Paul. Photo: Tom Evers

Saint Paul neighbors transform a contaminated railyard into a nature 
sanctuary while building community across cultures.

By Vicki Monks
Land & People (Trust for Public Land)
Spring 2006

Carol Carey admits that not everybody could see beauty in the abandoned 
railyard on the east side of downtown Saint Paul, Minnesota, before 
volunteer and redevelopment groups in nearby neighborhoods joined forces 
to reclaim the land.

One of the biggest challenges was to convince others that this 
long-neglected property near the Mississippi River was worth protecting. 
"The area was a toxic mess, says Carey, who was active in the effort and 
now leads Historic Saint Paul, a heritage preservation organization. 
Oily patches contaminated the soil, and heaps of junked appliances, 
garbage, and moldy mattresses littered the yard. Graffiti marred the 
tall sandstone bluffs at the edge of the site, and thickets of spiny 
buckthorn made walking treacherous.

As a former industrial property, already contaminated, the 27-acre 
railyard had been eyed for an asphalt recycling plant or a transfer 
station for concrete trucks. But Carey and others believed that the land 
would make a great park site. A park on the land would link up four 
recreation trails that now end at its boundaries, protect bluff-top 
views down the Mississippi, and provide a natural refuge within an easy 
walk of Lowertown and downtown. A park would aid restoration of 
migratory waterfowl and songbird habitat along the Mississippi flyway.

...

For the entire article, see
http://www.tpl.org/tier3_cd.cfm?content_item_id=20634&folder_id=3228

--


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org

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