Community Corner
County to Pitch Mendota-Lebanon Hills Greenway to City
If all goes according to plan, the 8.5 mile trail will wind its way south through Mendota Heights, Inver Grove Heights and Eagan before terminating at Lebanon Hills Park.
Bikers, hikers and nature buffs take note: This week, Dakota County will present the master plan for an ambitious new trail to the City of Eagan.
The Mendota-Lebanon Hills Greenway will be an 8.5 mile, north-south trail through mostly developed residential and business areas in Mendota Heights, Inver Grove, and Eagan. The trail will begin at the Village at Mendota and end at Lebanon Hills Regional Parks.
It is hoped that the proposed trail will form a link between Lebanon Hills and the North Urban Regional Trail.
In its entirety, the trail will cost just under $19 million. County officials say that the stretch from Mendota to Highway 55 carries a projected cost of $6.9 million. The southern half, from Highway 55 to Lebanon Hills, would cost almost twice that, $11.99 million.
To pay for the trail's construction, the county hopes to pull together a cost-sharing plan between itself and a number of entities, including National Park Services, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota pollution Control Agency, Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund, Legacy Amendment funds, watershed management organizations, foundations and non-profits, and state health grants. Once built, the county would pay most of the cost of operation and maintenance.
The county will present to Eagan's Advisory Parks Commission on Monday. The matter will go before the city council on Tuesday.
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