Find below published opinions, editorials, letters, commentaries and
columns about Birch Island Woods
Note: Writer Lyn Jerde's wistful apologia for a simpler environment
for our kids should have resonance for those who question the fast tracking
aggressiveness and complexity of suburban life. Ms. Jerde is the Community
Editor of the Eden Prairie Sun Current.
A town for kids, in the imagination of a former kid
by LYN JERDE - SUN NEWSPAPERS
(Created: Wednesday, May 3, 2006 10:52 PM CDT)
Not long ago, in a town not too far away (it's in the Central Time Zone,
anyway), there lived a city council with a fresh idea.
When contemplating new equipment for the city park's playground, council
members asked, why not let the kids who will play with it design it?
And why not name it Kid Town? So the kids went to their drawing board
(did it come with washable markers and crayons?), and designed something
that looked for all the world like a giant castle. Though it would not
surprise me if one wiseacre kid might have incorporated a dungeon or
a piranha-filled moat into the design, that did not happen. But all other
castle features - the drawbridges, the towers, the parapets - were built
in. To my knowledge, youngsters played there happily ever after. It made
me wonder: If kids could design a real Kid Town - a whole town, not just
an acre in a park - what would it look like?
I have no kids, but I used to be a kid. And if it were my drawing board,
and my washable markers, I can tell you, right off the bat, what would
and would not be in my design. There would be sports. Few organized sports.
A lot of unorganized sports. For the occasional budding Gretzky, who
had both the talent and the desire (his own, not his parents') to play
at a higher level, I would incorporate into my Kid Town maybe one indoor
rink, or one outdoor refrigerated rink. So, if a grade-schooler loves
hockey enough to get up before the sun, and to haul an equipment bag
bigger than himself to a before-school practice, that opportunity would
be available.
But for kids who lack NHL aspirations, there'd be a pond that is more
or less smooth when frozen. There, they could try out the skates they
got for Christmas, if they don't mind dodging a group of teenagers playing
pickup hockey, with homemade sticks and a puck made of heaven knows what.
And, for baseball-softball players not inclined toward structured practices
or a travel schedule, there would be a vacant lot within an easy walk
of home, where kids from age 3 to 18 - as few as 10 of them - could play
what my brothers, friends and I used to call "worky-up." A
player would start in right field, then rotate positions with each new
batter, until moving from the pitcher's mound to the batter's box, then
back to right field.
Not all sports would involve teams or games. Bike-riding is a sport.
And in my Kid Town, every kid would have a bike.
One feature of my Kid Town, which I didn't have when I was a kid, would
be a system of bike trails. I rode on the streets of Des Moines and the
country roads of Iowa - scenic and exhilarating at times, but not as
safe as I'd want for any young person today. I would, however, wish for
today's kids the freedom I had to explore on my own, for hours at a time.
Carrying nothing except my school's student phone directory and maybe
a peanut butter sandwich in a paper bag, I would set out to ride my bike
past the houses of all the kids in my homeroom in one afternoon.
And, for kids of today, I'd wish for places to explore that not even
a state-of-the-art mountain bike could reach.
Woods. Creeks. Tree forts. Fallen trees. Yes, the woods might have poison
ivy. Yes, the creek might run a little high after a big rain. Yes, the
tree fort might have a few rusty nails falling from it like ripened acorns.
In my Kid Town, moms and dads would warn us about such hazards, but not
shield us from them. There would be butterflies to chase, rocks to collect,
frogs and dragonflies to observe, ant colonies to stare at for hours.
For a place to sit and think about nothing in particular, my Kid Town
would include a dead fallen tree with an overhanging branch just strong
enough to support someone smaller than 100 pounds, but flexible enough
to provide a bouncy perch. And, since this is my fantasy, I'd make every
day in my Kid Town just like the day on which I write this - warm but
not too hot, sunny, a little breezy.
One can dream. Or remember. Or a little bit of both.
Lyn Jerde is community editor of the Eden Prairie Sun-Current.
EDN PRAIRIE NEWS
December 8, 2005
Speak out against encroachment
A few of our residents seem to think it is OK to treat city property
as their personal space. In cases where that property is set aside
to create a natural habitat or protective shoreline boundary, the encroachments
frequently change the function of the area into an extension of the
resident's lawn or garden. This is not only unlawful and disrespectful,
but unhealthful and truly unfortunate – our collection of naturalized
areas is a large part of what makes Eden Prairie beautiful, valuable
and exceptional.
The most well-publicized case of this is the man who removed 37 trees
blocking his views of Anderson Lake. These were mature trees that will
take years to grow back. Unfortunately, many of our neighbors are doing
similar things on a smaller scale.
These neighbors prune our city trees (disregarding time-of-year concerns
for the spread of such diseases as oak wilt and Dutch elm, as well as
a tree's natural growth cycle). They tear out native habitat to improve
their views and put in their preferred nonnative plantings. These folks
may even build structures and brick pathways on city property.
The repercussions of this are expensive to our city financially and
ecologically. When people tear out habitats, it deprives wildlife of
food and shelter and it deprives humans of the natural beauty of a native
site and the wildlife therein. When trees are mortally damaged by incorrect
pruning (or a resultant disease) the city must foot the expensive bill
for their removal. And a mature tree takes years to replace and, if planted
by the city, costs us all money. When shoreline buffer zones are removed,
man-made chemicals are more likely to pollute the waterway, making it
dirtier and more hazardous for fish and other wildlife as well as the
people who use the water for recreation or as a food source. And the
legal issues of shelters built on city property are almost too numerous
to mention: Who will pay to maintain or tear down these structures? Who
will pay if someone is injured by these structures and the city is sued?
Who will pay if the structures are damaged by a public user?
The city writes informational and warning letters, but a hardcore group
does not seem to care. City officials have gone out to the property to
talk directly to some of these offenders. This is a tough job because
our representatives are sometimes met with belligerence, and, too frequently,
ignored. When the city has attempted to clarify their boundaries by doing
a survey and setting stakes, some of these stakes have been moved or
torn out entirely. These behaviors are unacceptable. This is property
that is set aside to benefit all of us, and it needs to be defended more
effectively.
It is time for the city to take legal measures to protect our collective
interests. We must make our policies clear, and then enforce them. If
the resident won't return the property to its natural state, then the
city must do so and bill the encroacher (perhaps adding the cost to their
property taxes). If people remove survey stakes, the city must replace
them and, again, bill the criminal owner for removing them.
The city is you and me. The silent majority of us who love the beauty
of wildlife, wild land and clean water must speak up to let city officials
know that we do care. If we act now and act effectively, we won't have
to do what many cities are in the process of doing – that is attempting
to reclaim their natural areas and recreate wetlands and natural shoreline
boundaries.
Karen Rylander
Eden Prairie
EDEN PRAIRIE NEWS
November 18, 2004
SOUNDS OFF
For two years I have been following the Friends of Birch Island
Woods' efforts to obtain the four acres of land needed to save the Birch
Island Woods area and the 100-year-old Picha farm from development. The
efforts of our parks director to obtain the 4 acres have been minimal
at best.
Recently (Oct. 28, EP News) our Parks Director Bob Lambert made the statement
regarding this effort, "It didn't happen, so let's move on."
I find that statement appalling coming from the person who is suppose
to obtain, maintain and improve our park system. If I were the city manager,
Mr. Lambert would be replaced for making a comment like that. It shows
lack of effort and lack of care for the land, and the people who live
in Eden Prairie.
He seems to have the interest of the developers at hand, instead of the
interest of the residents of Eden Prairie.
The city has spent tens of thousands of dollars on survey's asking what
the residents care about the most.
EVERY survey found "saving open spaces" in the top three answers.
Mr. Lambert and the city have a mandate from the people to save these
spaces, by any means, whatever it takes.
We need a parks director who will not give up and try to find any way
possible to purchase this property. We do not need a parks director saying
it can't be done, let the bulldozers have at it.
Mr. Lambert also opposed putting the purchase of parkland on a separate
question in the May 11 referendum. Why? It certainly would have passed.
Mr. Lambert should explore every possibility to obtain the four acres
in question, not give up and let the bulldozers destroy what little open
land this city has left.
There are alternative solutions to every problem. The parcel others are
trying to save is only four acres in size. Our parks director should be
leading the effort to save this land, not saying it can't be done. I don't
believe Mr. Lambert can't find other ways to purchase this land. That's
what he's paid for.
If Mr. Lambert can back spending several million dollars on a water park,
certainly he can find ways to fund purchasing four acres of land.
The needs of the many out weigh the needs of a few.
Mr. Lambert needs seems to have forgotten that.
Larry Peterson
Eden Prairie
EDEN PRAIRIE SUN CURRENT
November 18, 2004
NATURAL TREASURES SHOULDN'T GO TO THE DOGS
To the editor:
So now the city is considering sites in three conservation
areas and Staring Lake Park for dogs to run unleashed. Richard T. Anderson
must be turning over in his grave.
The city honors the former council member for his environmental record
by
naming a conservation area after him on one side of town, and then Parks
and
Recreation Director Bob Lambert nominates a conservation area in Anderson¹s
part of town for reclassification as a dog park.
That sanctuary, Birch Island Woods, was created only after a campaign
involving hundreds of people, not a few of whom live in Anderson¹s
Kingswood
neighborhood and not a few of whom leash their dogs for walks through
the
woods.
I am among those who have persevered a few patronizing and self-important
past key officials, who I suspect in their guts don¹t really appreciate
the
Dick Andersons of this world.
I was a member of the citizen task force that developed the City
Council-approved plan for Birch Island Woods a plan that calls for
keeping
the 32-acre tract natural and permitting only leashed dogs.
Birch Island Woods is among the last areas in Eden Prairie that supports
a
menagerie of woodland and wetland animals and birds. These include deer,
fox, muskrat, coyote, groundhog and muskrat, as well as wild turkey,
woodcock, bluebirds, pheasant and pileated woodpecker plus owls,
hawks and
eagle that prey on the smaller animals.
Increasing numbers of unleashed dogs will drive these animals out, and
trample native wildflowers such as ladyslippers, blazing star and
coneflowers.
Mr. Lambert is reported to have told the parks commission that many people
have been walking their dogs leash-free through the area anyway. Not so
fast. In the two years that the woods have been protected as a conservation
area, the city has failed to provide it with any leash law signs. Pet
owners
who drive in or live nearby may be unaware of the leash law. Who can blame
them?
The large majority of the dog walkers I see during by daily visits to
the
woods use leashes. I believe they respect the environment and other visitors
the special-needs children from Eden Wood; the bicyclists and hikers
from
all over town; the Boy Scouts, who build woodchip trails; the hundreds
of
volunteers who remove buckthorn and pick up litter; the parents who feel
better about life knowing that their kids can see a fox and hear an owl
on a
single walk.
I am very uncomfortable with the fact that there is an individual on
city
staff who doesn¹t appreciate or want to protect this unique treasure
in Eden
Prairie.
Vicky Miller
Eden Prairie
Eden Prairie News
November 11, 2004
Commentary
by Vicky Miller
So now the City is looking at several conservation areas and a cross
country ski trail at Staring Lake Park as possible sites for dogs to run
unleashed. Richard T. Anderson must be turning over in his grave. The
City honors the late, former council member for his environmental record
by naming a conservation area after him on one side of town, then a month
later, Parks Director Bob Lambert nominates a conservation area in Anderson’s
part of town for possible reclassification as a dog park. That conservation
area, Birch Island Woods, was created as a result of a 2 1/2 year effort
involved hundreds of people, not a few of whom live in Anderson’s
Kingswood neighborhood; not a few of whom are dog owners who leash their
dogs when they walk through the woods.
I am among those who organized a now countless number of meetings, hearings,
meetings, fund raising events, nature hikes and literature drops. I am
among those who persevered alternately patronizing and arrogant posturings
of a few, past key city officials and a current parks director who I suspect
in their guts, despite the memorial, don’t really appreciate the
Dick Andersons of this world.
I was a member of the citizen task force that developed the plan for
the Birch Island Woods that was approved by the City Council in June 2002.
The plan, in part, calls for keeping the 32 acre tract as natural as possible
and restoring its wildlife habitats. The plan acknowledges the use of
the area by folks with leashed dogs but not for free-roaming dogs for
several good reasons.
The woods is among the very last areas in northern Eden Prairie that
still supports a menagerie of woodland and wetland animals and birds including
deer, fox, muskrat, ground hog, muskrat and various smaller animals as
well as wild turkey, woodcock, pheasant, pileated woodpecker and owls,
hawks and eagles which prey on the smaller animals. Blue birds have even
returned to areas along the railroad that borders the western edge of
the conservation area.
Increasing numbers of unleashed dogs will drive these animals out in
addition to trampling native wildflowers such as ladyslippers, blazing
star and coneflowers
Mr. Lambert is reported to have told the parks commission that many people
have been walking their dogs leash-free through the area anyway. Not so
fast. In the two years that the woods has been protected as a conservation
area, the city has failed to provide it with any leash law signs. Pet
owners who drive in from other towns or live nearby may be unaware of
the leash law. Who can blame them?
I live a few hundred yards from the woods which I visit almost daily.
Large majorities of people with dogs have them leashed. I would like to
think they are doing so out of respect for both the environment and the
other visitors - the special needs children from Eden Wood, the bike riders
and hikers from all over town, the groups of boy scouts who built wood
chip trails, the hundreds of volunteers who have pitched in to remove
buckthorn or do litter clean up, struggling parents who feel a lot better
about life knowing that their kids can see a fox and hear an owl on a
single walk. I am very uncomfortable with the fact that the residents
of Eden Prairie have an individual on city staff who doesn’t appreciate
or want to protect this treasure.
Vicky Miller is an Eden Prairie resident and dog owner.
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