Many of Minnesota's wetlands have been lost and the remainder degraded. Recent tiling and ditching have accelerated this situation. Through this program, shallow lakes and wetlands were designed, constructed, and intensively managed to benefit wetland wildlife and Minnesota residents. Habitat accomplishments from this proposal have enhanced 19,365 acres of wetlands and shallow lakes to benefit waterfowl and wetland wildlife. Work was accomplish through constructed infrastructure, cattail control, and a significant prescribed wetland burn.
This phase of WMA acquisition protected 1802.55 acres of prairie grassland, wetland, and other wildlife habitat as State Wildlife Management Areas open to public hunting. With these 16 acquisition we have exceeded our planned acres of 1362 by more than 400 acres. Breaking down acres by ecological section we acquired 282 acres in the metro and 1520 acres in the prairie. We have a balance of $52,798 of grant funds and $81,837.48 in program income that will be returned despite exceeding our acre goals.
This proposal will address a backlog of shallow lake and wetland habitat work that will otherwise go unfunded. These projects will address work called for in the Minnesota Prairie Conservation Plan, Long Range Duck Recovery Plan, and Shallow Lakes plan.
We propose restoration and enhancement of prairie and savanna on WMA’s, SNA’s, and Native Prairie Banks in Minnesota and restoration and enhancement of bluff prairies on State Forest Land in southeast Minnesota.
CMSM opened its new permanent site with increased capacity to serve as an informal learning center that playfully engages children, families, and school groups in interactive experiences with the art and cultural heritage of southern Minnesota. With its current appropriation, CMSM is poised to strengthen its core as an institution that promotes arts and cultural heritage learning through continued
Perform aesthetic upgrades to the Phalen Beach House focused on improved bathroom and changing rooms, concessions, staff space, storage, and seating areas.
The Equity Alliance MN will bring to life absent narratives of Latino, Hmong, Native, Asian, African American, and women of the Civil Rights Era in a collaboration among youth, social studies teachers, Full Circle Theater (FCT), and St. Paul Neighborhood Network. The narratives, researched by youth, will be transformed by FCT into a six person play that will be presented, video recorded, and distributed with accompanying curriculum written by social studies teachers for teachers across the Equity Alliance MN and the state.
Through fee-title acquisition, the Trust for Public Land permanently protected 242 acres (88% of our goal) in the Cannon River Watershed. This resulted in one new Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) and four additions to existing WMAs. Now publicly accessible, these protected areas include wetland, prairie, and "Big Woods" forest habitat. The permanent preservation of these places has reversed habitat loss, allowed for habitat restoration, and increased access to public lands for hunting, fishing, hiking, and other outdoor recreation opportunities.
The Children's Discovery Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota aims to strengthen its highly successful School Service Program by retaining a Program development coordinator, changing core interactive exhibits and creating new curriculum for pre-school and K - 5 students in ten northern Minnesota counties.
Full reconstruction of parking lots and associated entrance drives, path connections, and curbs into Como Regional Park, including asphalt and concrete removal, excavation, grading, stormwater management, erosion control, paving and concrete work, lighting, and landscaping
With the ML 2015 appropriation The Conservation Partners Legacy (CPL) Grant Program awarded 70 grants, 22 of these grants were the metropolitan area. Over 24,000 acres were enhanced, 2,500 acres were restored, and 386 acres protected through these 70 projects. Thirty-eight counties had CPL projects completed in them through 47 unique organizations. The average project for the ML 2015 grants was $96,000, with few exceptions most projects were completed on time and many were under budget.
Design and construct fishing nodes along Sucker Lake Channel, improve pedestrian connections, landscape restoration, and signage. Legacy funds will leverage non-state funds provided by the Vadnais Lake Area WMO for fishing node development and landscape restoration. Vadnais-Snail Lakes Regional Park had 746,300 visits in 2013.
Battle Creek Regional Park establish wayfinding for cross-country ski trails at Battle Creek, Tamarack Nature Center and Grass-Vadnais-Snail Lakes Regional Park.
Continue Implementation of adopted Master Plan to include a splash pad (small artistic interactive water feature with year-round interest.) Indian Mounds hosts approximately 344,000 visits annually, including 13% of both African Americans and Asians, and 3% Native Americans.
Mississippi River Regional Trail. MnDOT identified and supported Mississippi River Regional Trail connection from Harriet Island Regional Park in St. Paul to the Mississippi River Trail in Dakota County. Design, engineering and construction for a combine
Grass Vadnais Lakes Regional Park, design and construct trail on east side of Vadnais Lakes, new bituminous trail and parallel turf trail; site and restoration improvements; improve storm water management; and site amenities.
Design and construction of Tamarack Nature Center Campus Site and Infrastructure consisting of parking lot and roadway redevelopment, storm water management, pedestrian connections, landscape restoration, signage, and other site amenities at Bald Eagle-Otter Lakes Regional Park; supplement construction cost for Early Childhood Learning Center Project; supplement construction cost for the Tamarack Nature Center Interior Remodel project. *(There were 99,352 visits to the Tamarack Nature Center in Bald Eagle Otter Lake Regional Park in 2013).
Design and construct an early learning center at Tamarack Nature Center, and pedestrian connections, landscape restoration, signage, and other site amenities at Bald Eagle Otter Lakes Regional Park.
Develop a mountain bike trail master plan and initiate implementation of mountain bike trail improvements consistent with the master plan. ( There were 761,900 visits to Battle Creek Regional Park in 2013).
With this appropriation, the DNR enhanced and restored over 11,700 acres of public lands or permanently protected private lands under easement. Projects under this appropriation included prescribed fire, prescribed or conservation grazing, woody removal, and enhancing plant diversity. With this appropriation we were able to exceed our target acreage by 38 percent.
DNR modified six dams to allow fish passage and enhanced in stream habitat on two rivers with this appropriation. Also, habitat enhancement project were completed on 28 Aquatic Management Areas and three metro parks, totaling 1,002 acres. Stream habitat work for this appropriation and LSOHC-funded projects from other appropriations was aided by funding for a stream restoration coordinator and interns. These positions aided in public outreach, survey work, design, permitting, contracting, and coordination with project partners on these complex projects.
We will use a programmatic approach to achieve prioritized aquatic habitat protection, restoration, and enhancement of lakes and streams across all the LSOHC planning regions of Minnesota.
Building on the exhibit development community engagement process carried out through four successive Legacy grants, the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota will use the 2014-15 direct appropriation to complete fabrication and installation of several exhibit components for its permanent facility. Local resources, volunteers, and community involvement will be combined with museum expertise to complete this process.
This project had three components: 1) An arts club that meets weekly and provides arts education and peer mentoring; 2) A theater play that will showcase issues/challenges within the Somali community in the community. The workshops are designed to introduce youth to traditional Somali arts and encourage them to extend the tradition through their own artistic practice. 3) Showcasing Somali Art, presentation and intercultural community engagement at the Somali Independence day Festival in 2016.
The Minnesota DNR and the Minnesota Forest Resources Council work with forest landowners, managers and loggers to implement a set of voluntary sustainable forest management guidelines that include water quality best management practices (BMPs) to ensure sustainable habitat, clean water, and productive forest soils, all contributing to healthy watersheds. This project will monitor the implementation of these forest management guidelines and BMPs on forested watersheds in MN.
Operating budget for project and equity initiatives in Mississippi River Gorge, Hidden Falls-Crosby Farm, Lilydale-Harriet Island-Cherokee-Raspberry Island, and Battle Creek-Indian Mounds-Pigs Eye Regional Parks, as well as Sam Morgan and Bruce Vento Regional Trails. Using principles and guidance from the Great River Passage Master Plan, initiatives will support innovative public engagement, establishing organizational partnerships, providing areas for cultural activities, and enhancing participation in natural resource based activities, programs, and multi-modal access.?
Minnesota’s use of groundwater has increased over the last two decades. An increasing reliance on groundwater may not be a sustainable path for continued economic growth and development. The DNR is establishing three pilot groundwater management areas (GWMA) to help improve groundwater appropriation decisions and help groundwater users better understand and plan for future groundwater needs associated with economic development.
Minnesota, home to the largest Somali population in the United States, lacks resources for students to access knowledge and representations of Somalia. The Somali Museum of Minnesota will offer students immersive field trips illuminating the history and arts of traditional Somali society by subsidizing admission fees, integrating elders as immersive guides on tours, and developing take-home curriculum materials.
Prepare a master plan amendment for Battle Creek Regional Park, Rice Creek North Regional Trail, and develop a master plan for Lexington Avenue Regional Trail including design/engineering, community engagement to identify improvements for existing elements such as buildings, roads, parking, creeks, ponds, lakes, wetlands, trails, animal exercise, amenities, turf games, landscaping, utilities, stormwater management, restoration, signage, gathering nodes, fitness/play elements, land acquisition.
This project will establish a groundwater monitoring network in the 11 county metropolitan area. The network will provide information about aquifer characteristics and natural water trends by monitoring healthy aquifers (non-stressed systems). The project will also develop an automated system that captures groundwater level and water use data. This system will enhance evaluation of changes in aquifers that are stressed by pumping from existing wells.
In Phase 5, Friends of the Mississippi River and Great River Greening enhanced 277 acres at six sites, exceeding their goals by 48 acres (21%). The Minnesota Valley Trust acquired fee title to 32.4 acres for two high-priority additions to the Rapids Lake Unit, Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. The Minnesota Land Trust and the Trust for Public Land were unable to finalize their easement and fee title acquisitions when landowners changed their minds. OHF grant funds spent were leveraged more than 110% with $1,343,128 in other funds.
The Metro Big Rivers (MBR) Partnership successfully completed its work under the Phase 6 / ML2015 OHF appropriation, protecting 485 acres across 5 projects (198% of proposed) and restoring and enhancing a total of 1,055 acres (185% of proposed). The Partnership expended 99% of the OHF funds granted awarded to it and leveraged the grant by 57% with nearly $1,141,000 in other funds.
Arts and Cultural Heritage funding will allow us to pursue three major initiatives between July 1, 2015 and June 30, 2016: 1) Offer special exhibits and programs promoting creative and critical thinking in our main museum in St. Paul; 2) A Pop-up satellite Museum at the Mall of America featuring four changing exhibits to attract thousands of new visitors; and 3) Changing exhibits and access at Minnesota Children’s Museum-Rochester to ensure inclusive family experiences for the Rochester community. Recipient:
The DNR has been charged by the legislature to develop rules that protect and manage the Mississippi River Corridor Critical Area (MRCCA) for natural resource, economic development, transportation, historic preservation, and other values. This project engages stakeholder groups in a public process to balance regulatory protections with local flexibility and control.
