Now that summer is finally here, most residents of the Twin Cities are making plans to get outside even more – jogging or bicycling along trails, taking a walk in the evening with their families or friends, or simply enjoying the peace and quiet offered by trees and green scenery.
They probably don’t think much about a man named Horace Cleveland – if they’ve ever heard of him. But as we enjoy the outdoors, all of us owe a debt of gratitude to Cleveland, a 19th-century landscape designer. More than anyone else, he was responsible for Minneapolis being one of the “greenest” cities in the country – what we now call the “city in a park.”
In 1883, Cleveland wrote, “Look forward for a century, to the time when the city has a population of a million, and think what will be their wants. They will have wealth enough to purchase all that money can buy, but all their wealth cannot purchase a lost opportunity, or restore natural features of grandeur and beauty, which would then possess priceless value … .”
It is a cliché to say that truer words were never spoken, but it is true. Cleveland shaped the modern Minneapolis park system, and his vision was rewarded recently when The Trust for Public Land, one of the nation’s leading conservation organizations, named Minneapolis the nation’s best urban park system.
Minneapolis moved ahead of cities with renowned park systems, such as New York and San Francisco. The rankings measured several factors, and Minneapolis earned a perfect “five park benches” in easily surpassing all other major cities in the nation. Though St. Paul was not formally included in the ranking this year because it is not one of the nation’s 50 largest city by population, The Trust for Public Land analyzed St. Paul’s park system and concludes that the two cities, when counted together, still outrank every large city across the country.
Confirmation of what we already know
The ParkScore decision only confirmed to the rest of America what all of us who live in the Twin Cities know: that we have a wonderful system of parks, trails and open spaces.
We know parks offer a variety of benefits – access to the outdoors and exercise can help improve the health of children, in ways that sitting in front of computer screens and mobile phones cannot. And parks and the outdoors can be a factor in attracting and retaining the kinds of businesses, jobs and talented employees we need to keep the Twin Cities growing.
Our victory prompts the question: Where do we go from here? As both the Twin Cities grow, there is a renewed appreciation for our parks, and a desire to weave green space into the fabric of our community.
An important step we can take is to make sure all our residents have access to nearby nature, particularly in our two growing downtown areas. We need to build parks that connect the hearts of both St. Paul and Minneapolis to the Mississippi River flowing between the two cities, and eventually to the chain of lakes. Equally important is connecting neighborhoods in north and northeast Minneapolis to the Mississippi River thanks to a vision put forth by the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board and the Minneapolis Parks Foundation.
Neighborhoods along Green Line
Another excellent opportunity is along the Central Corridor light rail line (recently renamed the “Green Line”), which will eventually run 12 miles to connect the two downtowns. On its way, the new light rail line down the center of University Avenue will run through some neighborhoods which don’t now have enough parks and green space.
The prospect of “greening” this line with parks and other natural amenities offers us a great opportunity to pass along our values to the next generation.
Because of the work of visionaries such as Horace Cleveland and many others, our parks provide pleasure for every citizen, young and old. Now, we want to make sure that all future residents of the Twin Cities have the same chances we do.
Page Knudsen Cowles is a businesswoman, civic leader and chair of the national board of The Trust for Public Land. She resides in St. Paul.
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