Friends of the Riverfront

The National Park Service wrote to the City of Minneapolis in November 2005 that the DeLaSalle stadium proposed for Nicollet Island would do damage to a national historic district, and alternatives should be considered. Here is an excerpt:

"The proposed DelaSalle Stadium development would adversely affect the St. Anthony Falls Historic District in a number of ways. Grove Street is one of the physical anchors that define the historic setting of Nicollet Island... [T]hough we recognize that the proposed facility would be a convenience for the operation of the DeLaSalle High School athletics program and could help the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board in meeting some of its program needs, the proposal nonetheless is inconsistent with riverfront location guidelines, open space protection goals, and historic preservation purposes... [N]ew activities that do not need a river location, that do not contribute to the riverfront environment ... should be located outside the riverfront area. We recommend that other alternatives be more seriously evaluated to meet the proposers’ needs, including an alternate location for a new stadium complies in a less sensitive area, or use of existing facilities."

Click on 'read more' to see the full National Park Service letter.

United States Department of the Interior

National Park Service

Mississippi National River and Recreation Area

111 E. Kellogg Blvd., Ste. 105

St. Paul, Minnesota 55101-1256

IN REPLY REFER TO: L8017(MISS)-3

November 23, 2005

J. Michael Orange

Principal Planner

Minneapolis Planning Division

Community Planning and Economic Development

City Hall, Room 210

350 South Fifth Street

Minneapolis, MN 55415-1385

Dear Mr. Orange:

This letter contains comments from the National Park Service (NPS) on the Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) for the proposed DeLaSalle High School Athletic Facility Project. As indicated in the EAW, the entire project area, including all of Nicollet Island, the Mississippi River, and adjacent upland areas in the vicinity of the proposed project, is located within the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area (MNRRA), a unit of the national park system. The MNRRA was established by Congress in 1988 to protect, preserve, and enhance the significant values of the Mississippi River corridor through the Twin Cities metropolitan area. As also identified in the EAW, a Comprehensive Management Plan (CMP) for the MNRRA was approved in 1995. The CMP provides a policy framework for the coordinated efforts of federal, state, and local authorities, as well as the general public, to protect and interpret the nationally significant resources of the corridor and for analyzing plans and individual actions in the area. In our review of the EAW, we find the project inconsistent with several key MNRRA CMP policies and guidelines:

1) The proposed athletic complex is not in keeping with the CMP’s general criteria for compatible riverfront uses. The CMP gives special emphasis to protection of area along the riverfront due to the high concentration of significant natural, cultural, and economic resources, its potential for outdoor recreation, and a greater probability for serious adverse effects if not properly managed. It is our belief that the proposal does not demonstrate a clear need for a riverfront location; that is to say, the proposed facility is not reliant upon the river, a riverfront location, or a connection to the river for its operational needs or economic benefit. There also seems to be significant potential for conflict with established uses—particularly those of a more quiet and passive nature—on Nicollet Island and other areas within the Saint Anthony Falls Historic District, as well as potential inconsistencies with the character of nearby residential neighborhoods and components of the adjacent regional park system on, and adjacent to, the island. Further, we expect the proposed project would result in some loss of visual open space, and would interfere with some river views.

2. The proposal is not consistent with CMP goals that stress the preservation of public open space. Open space is a critical resource in the river corridor and its protection and enhancement is stressed in the CMP. The proposal calls for the elimination of existing public open space on land owned by the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board for the sole benefit of a narrow group of potential users. Such loss of open space is not supported in the plan.

3. The proposal is inconsistent with the historic preservation goals of the CMP. One of the principal purposes for which Congress established the MNRRA was to preserve, enhance and interpret its archeological, ethnographic, and historic resources. Of all the places that convinced Congress to establish MNRRA, the St. Anthony Falls Historic District is one of the most important.

No place anchors the metro Mississippi River’s historical significance like St. Anthony Falls. Geologically, it is unique: St. Anthony Falls is the only major waterfall on the Mississippi River. According to Dakota tradition, the falls are home to Oanktehi, the spirit of waters and the underworld. For the Dakota, Nicollet Island was once an important place for harvesting maple syrup. Historically, visitors to the falls comprise a who’s who of European and American exploration: French explorer Father Louis Hennepin, English colonist Jonathan Carver, and Zebulon Pike, the first American explorer to portage around the falls 200 years ago. Its painters include George Catlin, Henry Lewis, Alexis Fournier, and Albert Bierstadt.

Economically, the falls created a city with no peer west of Chicago to the Rocky Mountains and south to St. Louis. It gave birth to the saw milling and flour milling industries that became the leading producers of their commodities in the United States and, at time, the world. For some 50 years Minneapolis was the nation’s flour capital. Technologically, the falls produced the first commercial hydroelectric central plant in the United States. The St. Anthony Falls area boasts two National Historic Landmarks: the Pillsbury A Mill and the Washburn A Mill. They bookend James J. Hill’s remarkable stone arch bridge, which is a National Engineering Landmark.

For all the above reasons, the greater St. Anthony Falls area is a National Register of Historic Places District. Resting at the tip of the St. Anthony Falls horseshoe dam, Nicollet Island lies near the heart of all of this history. What happens here affects all that surrounds it.

The proposed DelaSalle Stadium development would adversely affect the St. Anthony Falls Historic District in a number of ways. Grove Street is one of the physical anchors that define the historic setting of Nicollet Island. Its presence on the island since the late 1860s grounds us in how historic events developed along and around it. Grove Street is one of the few through streets on the island, running from one side of the island to the other. As such, it is a defining feature of the island’s landscape which helps to interpret important aspects of the island’s history. It does not require buildings lining the eastern end to serve this purpose.

As designed, the project would have additional adverse effects beyond destroying a large section of Grove Street. The design calls for bleachers to be built across the road alignment. This would present a serious visual obstruction to what was once a clear line of sight down the road, destroying the visual role the road played as one of the through streets on the island.

The proposed high mast lighting would also adversely affect the historic district, particularly since the island has 360 degree visibility. The structures and stadium lights would be out of character with the historic district and would be visible from all directions.

Finally, the archeological report completed by Dr. Michelle Terrell demonstrates that a high potential for archeological sites exists in some areas of the proposed project. If National Register eligible sites exit in the project area, they could be adversely affected by the project. Given the benefits of the stadium project stated in the EAW, we believe those benefits simply do not justify the adverse effects on the St. Anthony Falls Historic District. The District is significant at the local, state, and national levels and the project would only benefit a relatively small, local group of users.

In conclusion, though we recognize that the proposed facility would be a convenience for the operation of the DeLaSalle High School athletics program and could help the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board in meeting some of its program needs, the proposal nonetheless is inconsistent with riverfront location guidelines, open space protection goals, and historic preservation purposes identified in the MNRRA CMP. In accordance with the CMP, new activities that do not need a river location, that do not contribute to the riverfront environment, or that would cause some environmental degradation or have some other detrimental effects on corridor resources, should be located outside the riverfront area. We recommend that other alternatives be more seriously evaluated to meet the proposers’ needs, including an alternate location for a new stadium complies in a less sensitive area, or use of existing facilities. If the project is approved where proposed and the proposers elect to proceed, we strongly recommend that un unlighted stadium design be implemented. We also recommend that an archeological survey and evaluation be completed before a final decision of the stadium project is made.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) for the proposed DeLaSalle High School Athletic Facility Project. If you have any questions concerning our comments please contact me or Jim Von Haden at 651-290-3030, ext. 235.

Sincerely,

JoAnn M. Kyral

Superintendent

cc:

Brother Michael Collins, DeLaSalle High School

Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board

Dennis Gimmestad, Minnesota Historical Society

Greg Mathis, Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission