Seeking comment on the present lawsuit by Friends of Grey Cloud, the Journal was directed by city staff to a prepared statement by Mayor Myron Bailey from the February 21 Council meeting. Here it is:
“I want to start out with a bit of a recap of the history of the Mississippi Dunes Golf Course site over the years. I have been involved with Cottage Grove City Government for over 25 years in various roles from commission member, council member, and Mayor. I remember before I even became involved with the City Commissions, I knew of the City’s desire to provide easier and safe access to the Mississippi River. As the City continued to grow, this desire has not subsided.
When the golf course was originally built, the site was tilled and graded almost end to end. We know this by looking at aerial photos of the site over the years. To say the site is pristine and has native habitat is not accurate. This has also been proven by a site review by the DNR and a hired environmentalist. Anything that has been identified as native and in good health is being saved in the area of the site the DNR has requested to purchase from the property owner.
The previous Golf Course owner attended various meetings with city staff and I looking to change the use of this property. Some of the desired uses he brought to us included high density housing, a resort style hotel, a campground, The Renaissance Festival, and We Fest just to name a few. City staff and I actually met with the We Fest Promoters and the Renaissance promoters in person based on these discussions. We told them we did not believe this site was suitable for these types of venues and though some may think it would be awesome for these types of uses, we did not.
Fast forward to the demise and bankruptcy of the golf course. A new owner bought the parcel as a retirement investment. The first housing developer, before Pulte, who came to town wanted wall to wall housing. They had housing right up to the shores of the backwaters of the Mississippi River. They were proposing just the minimum of park space, as required by law.
We said no. I said no. It was too dense and did not fit with the desire of the city to provide some access to the river. Then Pulte came to us with an idea for a senior gated community with limited public access to the river. We said no again to this idea which caused them to go back to the drawing board to find a solution that provided public access, preserved more open space and provided for multiple housing options. We have been consistent with our vision for the land and stood our ground to ensure that public access for all abilities to the river is achieved and there is a balance between life-cycle housing and open space. We also want to offer others the opportunity to live near the river. Through a lot of reiterations, park master planning, land use planning, community surveys, commission reviews, etc. we are at where we are today.
The City of Cottage Grove works with each developer to keep as much open space as possible. In this proposed development, the City of Cottage Grove is capturing the entire riverfront for park and open space. We had never intended on preserving the entire golf course property for park or open space. We followed the Comprehensive Plan and look to create a significant regional park on Grey Cloud Island in the future. When the opportunity to gain additional park land along the backwaters of the Mississippi River came with this proposed development, we worked with the landowner, Washington County, and the DNR to keep development off the river.
Other notes of interest:
• Of the 200 acres of the total property, over 110 acres is being preserved as park, open spaces, wetlands, and buffers.
• There will be no housing along the river. All of this land is going to be park and natural open space connecting to the Grey Cloud Dunes Scientific and Natural Area.
• The original EAW that was completed had housing proposed at up to 499 units. The current proposal is slated for 377 total units. Well below the possible density within this zoning.
• We once again checked in with the DNR on any issues or environmental concerns. We received a letter dated 1/16/2024 that states this development will have no negative impact or environmental concerns.
• Based on the environmentalist hired for review of this site, no endangered species will be affected by this development.
• We are still waiting for the DNR to purchase the 12.4 acres below the tracks and the 35.1 acres above the tracks to add to the Grey Cloud Dunes SNA. They have the funding provided by Representative Rick Hansen to finalize the purchase. I personally wrote a letter to the DNR asking for immediate purchase of the property they desired before another developer comes in and tries to develop the 35.1 acres above the tracks. I received a letter back last week saying they are working quickly and expect to close on the 2 parcels no later than June of this year. This is great news.
• Some suggest there is money to purchase the entire property for preservation. This is not accurate. We have worked with our Legislators, County, State, and DNR to gather funding for the parcels of property we want to protect. The DNR walked the golf course site and specifically selected the 12.4 acres for preservation. We suggested they purchase the 35.1 acres above the tracks hence this is where we are today. We were hard pressed to find the funding to purchase what we were able to purchase. If there was funding available to purchase the entire site, The Friends of Grey Cloud or the Friends of the Mississippi River could have purchased it during any of these gaps in development between Pulte and Rachel or when it was originally in foreclosure for many years. They did not. That is because the money is not actually there. They want the city to buy it and raise
our citizens taxes dramatically. That is not feasible or financially possible. • The city currently manages over 2,600 acres of parks and open spaces across the city. We have grown our parks system from 22 parks in 2000 to 38 parks today. We maintain over 1,085 acres of current parks. Up from 600 acres in 2000. We went from 19 miles of trails to 96 miles of trails. As you heard early this evening on our consent agenda, we accepted grant money to continue to create native greenways throughout the city. We care about our environment. We will continue to work to gain more park and open spaces where it is practical and financially feasible.
• Some of the Cottage Grove residents that sent us letters though the Friends of Grey Cloud petition asking us to preserve this land would not be living in Cottage Grove today if previous City Council’s had not allowed our city to develop in a smart and orderly fashion along with creating unique developments with parks and open spaces for everyone to enjoy. We are a growing city and we will continue to grow. Eventually there will be a significant Regional Park on the island. I would personally like to see the Friends of Grey Cloud work with the city to move forward with a master plan of the island to preserve certain parts of the island for park and open space. This master planning document needs to be approved by Washington County and the Metropolitan Council. I am fully supportive of doing this master plan. Help us get this done.
I have been dreaming of the day that I can take my grandchildren to the Mississippi River in Cottage Grove to canoe, fish, and learn more about nature. Our plan for this new park is for an interpretive center, outdoor classrooms, and other opportunities to learn about nature along the backwaters of the Mississippi River. I am proud of the proposal before us this evening and I support this proposal. I want to thank Rachel
Development for your passion, vision, and creativity to work with an environmental focus and sensitivity with this proposed development. You live by your word to create beautiful neighborhoods connected to nature as you had previously done with the Eastbrooke Development in Cottage Grove. I have been impressed by your careful attention to the details and managing the important aspect of protecting our environment. We will finally give the Citizens of Cottage Grove the opportunity for river access and a connection to the backwaters of the Mississippi River. This proposal will also give citizens the option to live closer to the river and have easy access to the Grey Cloud Dunes Scientific and Natural Area and the river.
Thank you.”
