Stadium Blog Post

While UMore Park might not be user-friendly now, the proposed Gophers stadium deal could help more enjoy its wild beauty.

April 15, 2006
Star Tribune
Anthony Lonetree

To better understand how the state could benefit from the acquisition of 2,840 acres of rolling hills and farmland near Rosemount, you'll have to get out of your car.

Having a horse helps, too.

From atop a horse, say Peggy and Greg Pasillas, who often ride the trails at UMore Park, you can see crops rippling as wild turkeys scatter, and visitors can realize, too, just what it's like "to turn a corner and get a whole new view," Peggy said.

Special effort is needed to appreciate the scenery in the southern half of UMore Park -- owned by the University of Minnesota and being offered to the state in exchange for investing in a new Gophers football stadium -- because of its narrow gravel roads and the unencouraging signs that lead to it.

Right now, not a lot of people are willing to brave the conditions. During the year that ended March 31, the park recorded sales of only 61 seasonal passes and 187 daily passes. But that could change as the proposed land swap focuses new attention on the park and local officials and outdoors enthusiasts rally to preserve and enhance it for future generations.

"I think the sky's the limit of what's possible there," said Al Singer, farmland and natural areas program manager for Dakota County.

The UMore property also is just one piece of what could be more than 4,000 acres preserved for public use in the fast-growing county.

Many are savoring the potential of what could be a "true outdoor experience," said state Rep. Denny McNamara, R-Hastings, who cautions that much work still must be done to figure how all of the parks pieces will fit together.

Whether all the pieces will be there still is to be determined, too.

At the Capitol, the Gophers stadium plan has passed the House and awaits Senate action.

To view this entire story, see: http://www.startribune.com/462/story/373299.html