District 12

St. Paul bike plan

St. Paul Public Works is updating the city’s Bike Plan. Major emphasis is on planning for connected, separated bike paths throughout the city so people who are not current bike riders feel safe enough to ride with less danger from cars.

Public feedback is being gathered through July, and the City Council may vote on the plan later during the month. Comments can be made about priorities or locations for needed infrastructure on an interactive map: tinyurl.com/mapbikeSP and the full draft plan can be found at stpaul.gov/bikeplan.

You can hear a presentation from the plan’s author about the St. Anthony Park particulars at the next District 12 Board meeting on July 13. The meeting is on Zoom, and the presentation will start around 7:20 p.m. (link at sapcc.org/event).

Rain gardens on Raymond

In June, some members of the Ramsey County Master Gardeners assisted the Environment Committee with maintenance of two community rain gardens along Raymond Avenue

New native plantings are planned for the garden at Raymond and Ellis in 2024 with grant support from the Capitol Region Watershed District.

Community storm drain adoption

The Mississippi River could use our help! The storm drains in our neighborhood empty unfiltered into the river, so it is vital to keep leaves, sediment, trash and pet waste out of the drains.

You and your family can lend a hand by adopting a drain (go to mn.adopt-a-drain.org to pick and name your drain) and by stenciling the reminder, “Keep ’em Clean, Drains to River,” around storm drains in south St. Anthony Park from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Sunday, July 16. For more information and to sign up online, go to sapcc.org.

Westgate Commons Park survey

Do you live or work near Westgate Commons Park? The first phase of development is nearing completion and the SAPCC and the St. Paul Parks and Recreation Department want to know what other amenities neighbors and park users would like to see. Funding from the University of Minnesota’s CURA community-based research program will allow graduate researcher Ezgi Özçelik to survey neighbors.

Survey findings will be shared at the opening celebration of the park, held in conjunction with District 12’s second annual ice cream social on Saturday, Sept. 16.

Time to test your soil

This is a great time of year to test your soil, whether it’s for your lawn, garden, or a future gardening area. The University of Minnesota Soil Test Lab is a reliable, close place to have your samples analyzed. Check out the details at soiltest.cfans.umn.edu/testing-services/lawn-garden.

Board members sought

The District 12 Community Council has open seats. Contact kathryn@sapcc.org for more information or visit sapcc.org.

Also, the District 12 Equity Committee needs new members to help organize events. It has been focusing on tenant rights and food equity.

The committee meets via Zoom the last Thursday of every month.

District 12 upcoming meetings

St. Anthony Park Community Council committees discuss a variety of issues at their monthly meetings. Visit the sapcc.org to learn more.

All meetings are hosted via Zoom. Meeting times are subject to change. For ongoing updates and meeting changes, follow along on Facebook @St.AnthonyParkCommunityCouncil.

•  Land Use Committee: 7 p.m. Thursday, July 6, Aug 3

•  District 12 Board: 7 p.m. Thursday, July 13

•  Transportation Committee: 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 25

•  Environment Committee: 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 26

•  Equity Committee: 7 p.m. Thursday, July 27

Submitted by Jessica Willman, District 12 community organizer.