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Printer version: New parks may quench thirst for green space Page 1 of2 startribune.com ~!Q.~eWi!lgQW Last update: March 27, 2005 at 10:21 PM . New parks may quench thirst for green space Mary Lynn Smith Star Tribune Published March 28, 2005 The parks crunch is coming. As the metro area continues to grow, local planners and open-space advocates hope to set aside more land for parks before it becomes too expensive or is built over for homes and businesses. The Metropolitan Council's 25-year plan would include three new parks in the outer reaches of the metro area and additions to numerous existing park areas. A public hearing on the plan is set for April 6. "It's time to be bold again about open space," said Susan Schmidt, state director for the Trust for Public Land's Minnesota office. "We have a strong park and trail system that's used heavily," said Glen Skovholt, who chaired the Metropolitan Parks and Open Space Commission, which put together this latest plan. "We need to maintain it and develop it and look at the gaps in the system ... because someday we'll run out of sites in the metro area." . The pressure for more recreation space is nothing new. More than 1 00 years ago, people such as Horace Cleveland and Charles Loring created a network of parks and boulevards along the lakes and waterways of Minneapolis and St. Paul. And then in 1974, the Metropolitan Council took 31,000 acres of existing parks throughout the Twin Cities and designated them regional parks. They logged 5 million visitors in 1975. Thirty years and $367 million later, the regional park system has grown to 52,000 acres, 47 regional parks and reserves and 170 miles of trails that attract about 30.5 million visitors a year. And the crowds keep growing. "It's a good balanced system that has something for everyone," Skovholt said. But it could stand some tweaking to reflect changing demographics and demands, he said. The large family gatherings common in the Southeast Asian community could use larger groupings of picnic tables. Camping facilities are filling up faster in the summers. "People just want to get away from home, and it doesn't mean they want to drive across the state to do it," Skovholt said. And there's the parkland gap that will grow as the Twin Cities adds an expected 1 million new residents by 2030. The draft plan calls for: . · New parks. Develop and acquire 1,500 to 2,500 acres in the St. Francis area of northwest em Anoka County; 1,500 to 3,200 acres in the Blakely Township area in Scott County, and 460 acres in Empire http://www.startribune.com/dynamic/story .php?template=print_ a&story=5315499 3/28/2005