More Sidewalks, Bike Trails Coming to St. Louis Park: Council Passes $20 Million Project

St. Louis Park will be going forward with a comprehensive ten-year sidewalk and bike trail project expected to cost $17 million to $24 million despite pushback from many residents, who said that sidewalks would decrease their privacy, raise the cost of snow removal, slash the size of front lawns and harm property values.

In front of an audience of more than 100 residents, the St. Louis Park City Council voted 5-0 Monday night in favor of the “Connect the Park” project, which will establish a citywide grid-system with sidewalks roughly every quarter mile and bike trails (both designated and undesignated “share-the-road” lanes) every half mile. (Mayor Jeff Jacobs and council member Jake Spano were absent.)

The project will be paid for primarily through three general obligation bonds—costing the average homeowner between $852 and $1,192 over the next 25 years. The estimated $34,000 per year in maintenance costs will be paid from the city’s general fund.

City council member Anne Mavity said that city staff would work with individual neighborhoods to customize the roll-out of sidewalks and that each neighborhood's sidewalks would need to be approved by the council on a case-by-case basis. She would be looking to preserve the integrity of trees and root systems whenever possible.

“We love our canopy and the green of our community,” she said.

Dozens of residents spoke during a public hearing Monday evening, most of whom expressed annoyance at the prospect of lacing St. Louis Park with sidewalks or made requests to have their neighborhood exempted from the project.

Mary Geindorff said she remembered signing the paper for her home on the 3900 block of Monterey Ave with her late husband the first week of June, 1968.

“The area takes pride in their homes and yards,” Gendorff said. “The loss of trees and shrubs plus our privacy and possibly our property values truly affects our lifestyles, and I respectfully ask you to delete us from the project.”

Residents of the Minikahda Vista neighborhood were particularly vocal against sidewalks on their streets, and eight households on 40th Street collected 146 signatures for a petition opposing sidewalks in front of their homes.

The council responded to the petitioners, amending the plan to remove 40th Street and Westmoreland Lane from the areas marked to receive sidewalks.

Shawn Jacobson, who signed the petition, said he was opposed to high “financial and environmental cost” of sidewalks and that alternatives such as passenger lanes and more stop signs could make the neighborhood safer without drawing the ire of homeowners.

“We’ve been talking with a lot of our neighbors lately, and we find that a great majority are opposed to this one part of the plan,” he said.

But not everyone was opposed to the city’s sidewalk plan.

Patrick Djerf, who graduated last month from Susan Lindgren Elementary, said he often would bike or walk the mile from his home to his school.

“I think we should add more sidewalks because it would help like me walk to school, my friends’ houses, parks and pools safely,” Djerf said. “It would encourage other kids and adults to be more active.”