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ounded by the rich floodplain of the Minnesota River on the north, Eagan's natural beauty is a big part of the city's popularity. Rolling wooded hillsides, oak savanna, lakes, and prairie potholes have fueled rapid suburban growth. Now the city is nearly built out, with few remaining opportunities for either development or open space conservation.
Three years ago development and conservation seemed to be at loggerheads when some Eagan residents eyed Patrick Eagan Park as prime real estate for a golf course development. Others saw the 102-acre wooded wetland complex as one of the last examples of what the whole area once looked like.
Thanks largely to the grassroots Friends of Patrick Eagan Park, city officials began working with DNR Metro Greenways, Dakota Conservation District, Sierra Club, and the Trust for Public Land to protect a 300-acre ecological corridor connecting Patrick Eagan Park with Lebanon Hills Regional Park. The city council has agreed to match a Metro Greenways planning grant to map out how such a corridor might be woven out of existing parks and private lands. The city also has committed money to augment another Metro Greenways grant aimed at acquiring a key 9-acre parcel adjacent to Patrick Eagan Park.
Eagan's city council listed among their top 2003 goals the preservation of open space, particularly within the Eagan Core Greenway. But the battle to protect these crucial properties is not over. Two important parcels are particularly in danger from development pressure. If decisive funding for them isn't found within the next two years, portions of Eagan's most environmentally sensitive and expansive parcels likely will be lost.
About the photographs
In conjunction with this campaign, we invited 10 Minnesotan photographers to photograph each of our Twin Cities Treasures. This page includes low-resolution images of the Eagan Core Greenway by Meg Ojala, who also received McKnight Artist Fellowships for photography in 1987 and 1991.
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