Hiawatha Golf Course Master Plan Schedule - 2021
The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board's latest E-mail about the Hiawatha Golf Course Master Plan says that they will
be presenting the latest version to the Commissioners on February 17, 2021 at a public meeting.
In their statement they specifically state that the plan WILL NOT retain the 18-hole golf course because it will "fundamentally alter the project and go against the Board’s direction for the Master Plan." Thus, they are disregarding the OVERWHELMING public support in the MPRB's public surveys for the 18-hole golf course.
The schedule is as follows:
February 12, 2021 - Posting of the revised plan on the MPRB web-site.
February 17, 2021 - Public Hearing
February 17, 2021 - Planning Committee will consider approval of the Plan.
March ??, 2021 - Board of Commissioners will consider approval of the Plan.
The Board meeting in March is not yet scheduled, but will likely be on March 3, 2021.
Also note: The Planning Committee could vote not to approve this plan, but that committee of 5 is stacked with 3 Commissioners aligned
with Musich on this issue (Forney, Vetaw and Meyer), so it is almost a given that this committee will rubber stamp the plan.
Please let the Park Board know how you feel about their plan!
Contact Info For Your Representatives.
The following is the message sent to Community Advisory Committee members on January 15, 2021:
Hello Hiawatha Golf Course Area Master Plan CAC members,
I hope the new year is going well for you. Thank you for your patience as we navigated a trying year. We are very close to finishing up the Master Plan, but please remember that there is still a great amount work to do!
The public hearing for the Master Plan will take place the evening of February 17, 2020. Exact details on the time and the way in which you can voice your thoughts to the Board will be announced a few days prior to the hearing. The Master Plan document will be posted to the project’s webpage the Friday prior to the hearing. That same night, the Planning Committee of the Board of Commissioners will consider the approval of the Master Plan. The full Board of Commissioners will consider the approval of the Master Plan at the first meeting in March.
I am currently processing the 345 surveys and several emails I received during the 45-day comment period. These surveys and emails will produce about 1100 comments and about 350 comment themes. I’ve personally read each survey response and tabulated each comment and sorted them into themes. I’ll soon be ranking the themes into three (low, medium, and high) categories based on their impact to the plan and on the direction the Board of Commissioners gave during the planning process. Generally, low impact themes will be incorporated where appropriate. These are things like spelling errors and including a little more clarity on a subject. Medium impact themes are themes that suggest something be added or removed from the plan that does not fundamentally alter the plan. An example might be to include a picnic shelter in a space where there wasn’t one planned. Medium impact themes are summarized and included in the board action as possible amendments the commissioners may choose to approve. High impact themes fundamentally alter the project and go against the Board’s direction for the Master Plan. They will not be considered or included in the final Master Plan. High impact themes include constructing 18 holes of golf at the expense of the water management plan, and the removal of golf all together.
Please stay tuned, I’ll send you another update with links to the board action and public hearing info on Friday February 12 when it is made publicly available.
Thank you,
Tyler Pederson, PLA
Design Project Manager
Planning Division, Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board
2117 West River Road
Minneapolis, MN 55418