Design and reconstruct approximately 12,300 lineal feet of bituminous trails in that portion of Hyland-Bush-Anderson Lakes Park Reserve managed by the City of Bloomington.
Rice Creek North Regional Trail. Design and construct approximately 4,200 lineal feet of the Rice Creek North Regional Trail from Hodgson Road to Baldwin City Park.
Construct 2.1 miles of paved trail between First Street in the City of Chaska and County Road 40 in the City of Carver on the Minnesota River Bluffs Regional Trail.
Design, engineer and construct segment of the trail including grade separated crossing at Hwy 110 and Dodd Road intersection and a connection to Valley Park.
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).
Lake Elmo Park Reserve. Build Winter Recreation Area including plan winter recreation area, develop recreation facilities to accommodate evening use; install lighting for ski trails and site; develop roads and parking lot; remodel barn for use as a trailhead. A?
Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park, redevelop Boom Island & BF Nelson picnic area, including playground replacement, bike and pedestrian trails, wading pool. Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park, develop master plan. Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park, construct playground. A?
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).
The USS Essex, a National Register Property located in Duluth, is Minnesota's only US Navy shipwreck, and the only known shipwreck originally built by renown shipbuilder Donald McKay. Its current location on the shoreline of Minnesota Point is unfavorable for long-term preservation. To ensure the long-term preservation of the Essex this project developed several options for the future of the Essex, and the requirements needed to fulfill those options.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has identified streamflow alteration as a key stressor on aquatic life, but the characteristics of streamflow alteration acting as stressors have not been identified in the MPCA Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) process. Without indices that characterize streamflow alteration, the MPCA cannot quantitatively associate metrics of aquatic life condition to streamflow alteration. The lack of quantifiable indices limits the ability of the MPCA to assess environmental streamflow needs for streams and rivers throughout Minnesota.
MNHS is developing new curricula, programs, and resources to engage students in learning about Minnesota history. In FY16 a full review of online resources for the K-12 audience will be completed and an action plan put in place to update content and the design of online curriculum offered to K-12 teachers and students. In addition, staff are working with the Oliver Kelley Farm to create new curricula and programs on agriculture, history, and STEM for K-12 teachers and students. Two new programs will be developed and piloted at the Oliver Kelley Farm in FY16.
Carver County has identified water quality improvement of Carver, Bevens and Silver Creek as a water management priority. This project will identify storage or wetland restoration sites that are highly effective at reducing pollutant loading to downstream impaired waters using high-resolution Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data and Geographic Information System (GIS) processes. The watershed landscape has been highly modified for agricultural production land development; less than 50 percent of pre-settlement wetland acres remain in Carver County.
Increasingly, people are turning to digital resources for answers to questions or as a starting point for research. MNopedia is a new digital resource for the public from the Minnesota Historical Society.
Working with the Minnesota Newspaper Association, local historical societies and newspaper publishers, the Minnesota Historical Society launched an innovative project to expand the number of contemporary newspapers available in digital form.
In the pilot phase of the project, the Society developed a methodology for digitizing, preserving and indexing newspaper content. Those processes will be tested with six newspapers and optimized in 2011.
Through this funding, the Minnesota Historical Society is advancing the work of making collections information available online. The Society is photographing 3D objects in the collections and completing corresponding descriptions that will be published online, allowing web site visitors to access an increasing volume of historical information.
Partner Organizations: Minnesota Geospatial Information Office (MNGeo), Minnesota Secretary of State, Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), Minnesota Association of County Surveyors (MACS), U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
MNHS continues its focus on preserving and making accessible the newspapers published in the state. Last year, the staff concentrated on acquiring digital content from publishers and building the access hub, Minnesota Newspapers Online (MNO). Work on both of these activities will continue.
Increasing the public's online access to the MNHS permanent collections remains a top priority for the Collections Department. Since the beginning of FY16 (July 1, 2015), over 1,000 artifacts have been digitally photographed and cataloged. (About a third of the artifacts have been published to our online catalog.) This included American Indian material culture (338 items) as well as recent acquisitions and artifacts associated with the Minnesota State Fair (200 items) and popular music in Minnesota (345 items).
The Historic Recognition Grant program will preserve, recognize, and promote the historic legacy of Minnesota, with a focus on commemoration of Minnesota's role in the American Civil War via creation of a digital Civil War resource to aid student instruction for sixth and seventh grade teachers is the third of three projects being administered by MNHS in cooperation with the state's Civil War Commemoration Task Force are in development
MNHS is working to engage Twin Cities youth in programming in order to increase their interest in history and the Minnesota Historical Society. MNHS promotes and recruits diverse students for programs that engage them in understanding how public organizations present historical narratives. One of these programs is the American Indian Museum Fellowship program (above). The funds also provide logistical support for diversity outreach efforts, which includes having tables at events and community engagement activities.
The commissioner shall develop a ten-year strategic state parks and trails plan considering traditional funding and the funding available under the Minnesota Constitution, article XI, section 15. The plan shall incorporate the 25-year framework developed by the University of Minnesota Center for Changing Landscapes. (HF 1231, Art 3, Sec 2)
This program provides critical assistance to MN DNR Parks and Trails Division Regional and District offices to assist with renewal and rehabilitation efforts prioritized locally by field staff. Projects include the following types: State Park Building and Facilities Emergency Repair and Maintenance, Paved Trail Maintenance and Asset Preservation, and State Park and State Forest Trail Renewal. This project is a newly reorganized budget area that consolidates these three smaller project areas reported on in previous years.
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.
Acquire 910 acres of high priority habitats for designation as Wildlife Management Areas or Scientific & Natural Areas emphasizing Prairie Conservation Plan implementation and coordinating with partners. All lands will be open for public hunting, fishing and trapping.
The 1901 Dodd Ford Bridge, a significant contributor to the development of Amboy, was slated for replacement by Blue Earth County. Federal funds were sought by the County for the project. This initiated section 106 and 4(f) reviews, which concluded that it would be prudent and feasible to renovate the bridge on site. However, more specific data is required about the historic bridge renovation program and costs. The grant money assisted in funding the hire of a consultant to examine costs and methods to restore and preserve the 1901 Dodd Ford Bridge.
Nitrogen is a serious problem in Minnesota's Mississippi River Basin and the Dodge Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) will address this problem through saturated buffers. Nitrates have been linked to adverse health effects, and nitrogen is the leading cause of the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico. Agriculture drainage through the use of tile drainage systems have been identified as the number one leading source of nitrogen in the Mississippi River Basin.
The Drinking Water Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CEC) program identifies environmental contaminants for which current health-based standards currently do not exist or need to be updated, investigate the potential for human exposure to these chemicals, and develop guidance values for drinking water. Contaminants evaluated by CEC staff include contaminants that have been released or detected in Minnesota waters (surface water and groundwater) or that have the potential to migrate to or be detected in Minnesota waters.
