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<br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Printer version: Newparks may quench thirst for green space <br /> <br />Page 2 of2 <br /> <br />Township in Dakota County. <br /> <br />· New trails. Acquire and develop 123 miles oftrails. Targeted areas include the Crow River corridor, <br />north-south and east-west trails in Dakota County, an east-west trail in Scott County and connector trails <br />linking Baker, Crow-Hassan and Elm Creek park reserves. <br /> <br />· Go regional. Designate Pine Point Park in Washington County and Tony Schmidt Park in Ramsey <br />County as regional parks. Also, bring Trout Brook, Summit Avenue and Lexington Parkway trails into <br />the regional system. <br /> <br />· A little bit more. Acquire additional land in and near current parks and trails. <br /> <br />"These are ambitious goals," said Dorian Grilley, executive director of Parks and Trails Council of <br />Minnesota. "The parks provide a place for physical activity and that's a hot topic right now. It's about <br />creating livable communities and providing quality of life that attracts and keeps people here." <br /> <br />But there could be a catch. "Money is going to be a challenge to implement it," Grilley said. A <br />conservative estimate for the plan amounts to nearly $435 million, or about $17.4 million a year, up <br />from the annual average of$12.2 million spent during the past 30 years. <br /> <br />"That's a significant investment," Grilley said. <br /> <br />And time is of the essence, he said. In hopes of moving things along at a quicker pace, Grilley and other <br />open-space advocates suggest creating a foundation that would attract donations and bequests to fund <br />park purchases. <br /> <br />Grilley's group has done that sort of thing for state parks. "We [recently] bought $1 million worth of <br />land for Whitewater State Park," Grilley said. <br /> <br />Schmidt echoed Grilley's financing concerns. <br /> <br />"Together we will all have to make a case about what is needed and the urgency for it. ... It's about <br />completing the system and protecting the last great places," she said. "We need to make sure there's a <br />political will and leadership to do it." <br /> <br />Schmidt also is concerned about 80,000 to 90,000 acres of significant natural land that's not addressed in <br />the plan. "We may want to consider low- and no-cost steps that can be used to protect it," she said. <br />"People are attracted to natural land and we're trying to protect it. ... We really can be bold." <br /> <br />Mary Lynn Smith is at 11JJsmjlhJ~sta.rtJ'.i!JJlne.com <br /> <br /><<;) Copyright 2005 Star Tribune. All rights reserved. <br /> <br />http://www.startribune.com/dynamic/story .php?template=print_ a&story=5315499 <br /> <br />3/28/2005 <br />