[Mnbird] trails at Old Cedar Ave Bridge

[Liz Stanley]

There has been some recent discussion about the plan for paved trails
around the Old Cedar Avenue bridge area. Turns out there is a group of
off-road bicycle enthusiasts who have been actively opposing this for a
while. Even though they have different goals, perhaps we share some common
ground. They have a petition and a Facebook page. I found out about this
group through another list and responded, they have been looking to
connect with the birding community so I offered to pass this info along.

From: Stephen Boyd <tandsboyd at gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2015 8:28 AM
Cc: savetheriverbottoms at morcmtb.org
Subject: Looking for some help!

Good morning!

I am a board member with the Minnesota Off Road Cyclists (MORC) which is
the local International Mountain Biking Association (IMBA) chapter
covering the Twin Cities Metro.

Last Fall we began an organized campaign to prevent a 20+ year old plan to
put a paved bicycle trail in the Minnesota River Valley between the
Bloomington Ferry Bridge and the Old Cedar Avenue Bridge. It is an
outdated plan that no longer serves the needs most of the people using
this area today.

We are cyclists. We aren't opposed to bike trails, but we are opposed to
spending millions and millions of dollars to put them in a flood plain
that is part of one of the few remaining truly wild and natural areas in
the Twin Cities.

By contacting you I'm hoping to accomplish two things:

1) Get some help spreading the word on this effort.

2) Make a better connection with folks outside the cycling community who
appreciate natural and wild places and might be interested in getting
involved.

Below are the links to our Facebook page and our Change.org petition. We
are getting plenty of traction in the community but unfortunately we are
experiencing "politics as usual" and getting little support from the
Bloomington City Council or the politicians pushing for this trail.

https://www.change.org/p/bloomington-mn-city-council-stop-the-plan-to-put-a-paved-trail-in-the-minnesota-river-valley-between-the-bloomington-ferry-bridge-and-the-old-cedar-avenue-bridge?recruiter=168826904
<https://www.change.org/p/bloomington-mn-city-council-stop-the-plan-to-put-a-paved-trail-in-the-minnesota-river-valley-between-the-bloomington-ferry-bridge-and-the-old-cedar-avenue-bridge?recruiter=168826904&utm_campaign=mailto_link&utm_medium=email&utm_source=share_petition>
&utm_campaign=mailto_link&utm_medium=email&utm_source=share_petition

https://www.facebook.com/SaveTheRiverBottoms?ref=bookmarks

Please let me know if this is something you would be willing to discuss
further.

Thanks much!

Have a great day!

Steve

Steve Boyd
Golden valley, MN
tandsboyd at gmail.com
507.206.1698

~Sent from my iDevice

Make your life a mission, not an intermission.
~ Arnold Glasgow



-- 
Liz Stanley
Bloomington, MN
liz at lizstanley.com
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