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<br />MEMORANDUM <br /> <br />To: Michael Hecker, Parks and Recrea�on Manager; Tim Sevcik, Street and Park Superintendent <br />CC: City of Elk River Parks and Recrea�on Commission <br />From: Laura Domyancich-Lee, FMR Ecologist; Julia Leone, FMR Pollinator Biologist <br />Date: November 1, 2023 <br />RE: Camp Cozy Park Natural Resources Management Plan <br /> <br />In coopera�on with City of Elk River Parks and Recrea�on staff and with funding from Sherburne County <br />Community Health, Friends of the Mississippi River (FMR) is developing a natural resources management plan <br />(NRMP) for Camp Cozy Park in Elk River, Minnesota. This memorandum serves as an overview of findings and <br />recommenda�ons of the dra� plan. <br /> <br />In 2023, FMR Land Conserva�on staff performed mul�ple surveys of Camp Cozy Park to record vegeta�on <br />characteris�cs, recrea�onal use, and habitat and water quality within the park. These surveys informed FMR’s <br />development of the dra� NRMP which documents these site characteris�cs, provides detailed management <br />recommenda�ons, considers current and future recrea�onal use of the park, es�mates costs for priori�zed and <br />phased restora�on of habitat, and iden�fies poten�al funding sources. <br /> <br />As a first cri�cal step to preserve imperiled habitat, the dra� plan recommends restora�on of the remnant na�ve <br />prairies through reduc�on of encroaching woody species. Ini�al removal would be followed by suppression of new <br />germinants, reintroduc�on of fire, and judicious seeding in areas where na�ve herbaceous species have been <br />diminished by increased tree and shrub cover. <br /> <br />In subsequent years of restora�on, the plan recommends management of invasive woody species (primarily <br />common buckthorn) in the woodland areas. Only specific areas of the woodlands have been affected by buckthorn, <br />and the plan calls out typical interven�ons in these units. Intensive removal and follow-up management over the <br />course of 4 years is recommended to eliminate buckthorn. Removal would be followed by the reestablishment of <br />herbaceous cover and a na�ve shrub understory through seeding and plan�ng. <br /> <br />The NRMP also contemplates current recrea�onal use of the park and generally recommends preserving and <br />further promo�ng access to those opportuni�es. The plan also recommends the addi�on of simple interpre�ve <br />signage, consistent with other signage within the park system, to orient park users to Camp Cozy. FMR staff are <br />par�cularly interested in the community’s feedback on current recrea�onal use, access provided by the exis�ng <br />trail network, and how the park might be used in the future and hopes to receive this input at the public mee�ng. <br /> <br />Lastly, FMR staff have developed cost es�mates to complete priori�zed and phased restora�on at Camp Cozy. In <br />the remnant prairies, 4 years of work to restore a more self-sustaining plant community and habitat is es�mated at <br />approximately $38,000. In the woodlands with invasive woody species, management and restora�on is es�mated <br />at approximately $78,000. FMR is ac�vely pursuing Outdoor Heritage Funding to ini�ate this work. <br /> <br />FMR appreciates the opportunity to have the dra� NRMP veted by Parks and Recrea�on staff, to receive <br />community input, and to have the plan considered by the Parks and Recrea�on Commission. The final NRMP, which <br />will be completed by December 2023, will be responsive to this feedback, and FMR looks forward to partnering in <br />its implementa�on.