A note from Wendy Jedlicka,
Upper Midwest Liaison / o2-USA:
Fellow TC Green Map Advocates,
here's my first sketch to get the wheels turning . . .
First- Be sure to stop by Green
Map central to get an idea of what we're trying to do:
http://www.greenmap.org/nyc/home/home.html
(the NYC online map)
http://www.greenmap.org
(the overview)
Though I did envision this as
a student manufactured product, complexity wise it's a college/vo-tech
thing (right down to the large press printing). But there's plenty
of work, for high school level (or casual) participants - we
badly need site scouts. This would fit in with any curriculum
the teacher is doing at the moment, and get students into looking
for 'green-ness'.
My first take on the map contents:
- I'm leaning toward
limiting the area of the map to the 494/694 core. Depending on
size, costs, etc. we may cut it back further, do two maps, or
other ideas as participants and funding crystallize.
- Green-ness in our area is often seasonal - I'd like the map
to have legends that reflect different things that go on throughout
the year.
Example of things that have
a seasonal focus or would be in a Season Headed Feature section:
Trails- Cross Country
Ski Trails, Walking Trails, Hiking Trials, Mountain Bike Trails,
Paved Bike Commuter trails (plowed?), Snowshoe trails. What are
the most stellar times for each trail? (The River Walk in Autumn
between the UofM and the Lake St. Bridge at midday is amazing,
Minnehaha Falls in the Spring is fantastic, the area around Fort
Snelling is always nice)
Seasonal Activities- Como Conservatory, Gibbs Farm Museum,
Community Garden stuff, pollution watch activities, recycling
drives (and places people can earn extra money by bringing in
recycling themselves, or where to bring things that aren't picked
up curb side [tubs, styrofoam, bubble pack, etc.]), clean-up
parties, classes in eco issues, regular meetings of green groups:
Sierra Club, The Natural Step, and stuff you can do in a given
season without burning petrol.
Examples of things to be on
the map:
- The newly reinstalled
drainage marsh at Lake Calhoun (and other improvements from the
MPLS. Water Quality Council)
- Businesses that use solar energy (and residents too if they
want to be on the map).
- Homes that use earth mound construction (One group in Seward
Neighborhood), and other eco architecture.
- All businesses that were listed in the Green Guide and the
Blue Sky Guide
- Phone/Website information to get/plan a bus trip route. (Now
that everyone has a cell phone, if you put the MTC on your directory,
you can walk out your door, call the number, tell them where
you want to go and when and they'll chart the trip for you, complete
with schedules (612-349-7000). OR you can do it all online. SOOOO
cool. http://www.metrotransit.org Also an overview of commuter/Bike-N-Ride/Car
Pool plans would be in order)
- Eco producers: Did you know RockTenn (formerly Waldorf) has
been making recycled paperboard for packaging since the early
1900's?!
Other thoughts:
I'm a bit of a devil,
but I'd really like to have the routes of the former streetcar
system the Twin Cities used to have before the 1920's (30's)
payoff of the city council to switch to buses.
Both my grandmother and great grandmother told me about the streetcars
and about the bribery scandal. You can still see the tracks poking
through the pavement occasionally in the older neighborhoods.
They told me the tracks went all the way out to Wayzata, and
that it was a special family trip in the Summer to go out for
lunch by Lake Minnetonka. What a shame we don't still have the
routes. (Hmmm, maybe this goes on the website: Ghosts from the
past)
I'd also like a history of the
general metro city planning. I know from a report I did in 6th
grade, that Minneapolis is one of the few major cities that actually
PLANNED for expansion with preservation of public access to green
spaces in mind (who said you never remember anything from elementary
school). My great grandmother also told me that Lake of the Isles
used to have 8 islands, and that the marsh around was drained
(though keeps trying to come back) to make room for all those
million dollar homes. So I'd say a history of the cities from
an eco/green space planning stand point is in order.
So we need researchers too! I
think there's enough work to go around.
The map I think should really
showcase the good things we have going on, though we should not
be afraid of recognizing where we screwed up along the way, and
what we're doing to fix that. (Like what genius decided it was
a good idea to let the street runoff go right into Lake Calhoun?
I'm a windsurfer and suck down more of that water than most.)
The paper map would be the darling
of the Chambers of Commerce to have at conventions, to include
in promo packages, to sell to real estate agents as a give away
to new home owners (As a product of a non-profit it's a tax deduction!).
It could also be a wonderful starting point for people wanting
to connect more with their town, or student groups looking for
a green outing. A self-tour as it were.
A companion TCGM website could
hold all the extra information we wanted to put on the map but
didn't have the room for.
That should be enough to chew
on for awhile, contact me any time if you have a question.
Wendy
