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Late spring delays MnDOT's 2022 Graeser Park preservation project

Late spring delays MnDOT’s 2022 Graeser Park preservation project

May 1, 2022. Graeser Park’s preservation project, launched by MnDOT in fall of 2020, will continue when spring arrives. It was a drizzly 43° when I visited on May Day. The average temperature is 64°, so we are quite a bit behind schedule. Already completed is initial preservation of the historic beehive fireplace and reconstruction…

Save Rock Island Park's original 1939 lilacs from development

Save Rock Island Park’s original 1939 lilacs from development

MnDOT believes that Rock Island Park’s lilacs are original from the 1930s. This long stretch of lilacs is located on the north end of the park, along 28th St. and Toledo in St. Louis Park, MN. Lilacs were part of the original 1930s landscaping of the Lilac Way, the showcase section of Highway 100. According…

Rock Island featured in Sun Sailor: Important St. Louis Park history hangs in the balance

Rock Island featured in Sun Sailor: Important St. Louis Park history hangs in the balance

New St. Louis Park Sun Sailor column profiles housing threat to historic Rock Island Park. We were thrilled to read Important St. Louis Park history hangs in the balance in the April 11, 2022 Sun Sailor. SLP resident, retired newspaper editor and freelance writer Bruce Lindquist profiled the threat of housing development to historic Rock…

Rock Island Park: Development still possible despite Council vote to send letter of interest to acquire MnDOT land

Rock Island Park: Development still possible despite Council vote to send letter of interest to acquire MnDOT land

Last updated 02/13/2022, 4:21:06 PM On February 7, 2022, St. Louis Park’s City Council voted to approve the meeting agenda, which included 4k. Direct staff to submit a letter of interest to acquire land that Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) has deemed to be excess right-of-way. Sadly, that does NOT mean Lilac Way’s historic Rock…

City waiting for MnDOT’s Rock Island Park environmental, historical review

City waiting for MnDOT’s Rock Island Park environmental, historical review

The City Council will consider historic Rock Island Park options after reviewing MnDOT report. Background: MnDOT has designated Rock Island Park’s two land parcels as ‘surplus’ and wants to relinquish ownership. After meeting with MnDOT, city staff delivered an initial report to council on Nov. 22nd, 2021. It included background and potential land uses (listed…

Rock Island staff report made public, to SLP Council on Nov. 22, 2021

Rock Island staff report made public, to SLP Council on Nov. 22, 2021

11.20.21 Lilac Way’s Rock Island Park is on the agenda for the St. Louis Park city council study session on Monday, Nov. 22nd. A written report regarding ‘MnDOT excess land update – Toledo Avenue and 28th Street’ will be given to the Council. This written report is a first step in bringing Rock Island Park…

MnDOT confirms Rock Island Park is surplus land, City of SLP reviewing options

MnDOT confirms Rock Island Park is surplus land, City of SLP reviewing options

Here are the latest Rock Island Park updates from MnDOT’s West Area Engineer and the Engineering Director of the City of St. Louis Park. Now that MnDOT has confirmed they do not need the land, the community is urging the city to tell MnDOT they are interested in owning this historic Lilac Way park. MnDOT…

Join the “Say Yes to Rock Island Park” virtual rally!

October 15, 2021. A sister park to restored Lilac Park, Lilac Way’s historic Rock Island park is facing a critical decision: preservation as a public park, or sale to a private developer. On Sept. 30th, 2021 MnDOT met with the City of St. Louis Park to discuss their interest in park ownership. Join the Rally!…

PLEASE: Urge Mayor and City Council to save historic Rock Island park from development

PLEASE: Urge Mayor and City Council to save historic Rock Island park from development

Click just one button to write and send your own email to the Mayor, seven Council Members and Restore Lilac Way. Lilac Way’s historic Rock Island park is facing a critical decision: preservation as a public park, or sale to a private developer. Let’s show the City of St. Louis Park that Lilac Way fans, history…

MnDOT may designate Rock Island and surrounding land as Surplus Property; City of St. Louis Park will get first right of refusal

MnDOT may designate Rock Island and surrounding land as Surplus Property; City of St. Louis Park will get first right of refusal

MnDOT and the City of St. Louis Park have met to discuss the future of Rock Island and its surrounding green space. If you support historic Rock Island and its open meadow, please stay informed about this issue and support preservation of this historic park and green space. This Lilac Way park is at risk,…

MnDOT: Graeser Park preservation project continues in fall of 2021

MnDOT: Graeser Park preservation project continues in fall of 2021

October 2, 2021. At 80 years old, Graeser Park in Robbinsdale is a scenic wayside rest with noteworthy historical significance. While it has suffered neglect over the years, much of the original park is still intact, including A large flagstone terrace Limestone curbing and walls An enchanting rock garden The iconic beehive fireplace MnDOT project…

St. Louis Park benefits from Rock Island's flourishing open green space

St. Louis Park benefits from Rock Island’s flourishing open green space

September 9, 2021. Lilac Way’s rare Rock Island park in St. Louis Park, MN is surrounded by lovely wide open green space. This open urban oasis is a habitat for many native plants and creatures, including insects, birds, deer, and wild turkeys. A favorite nature spot for residents, it may support native pollinators in decline,…

Lilac Park's restored beehive fireplace featured in MSP Magazine

Lilac Park’s restored beehive fireplace featured in MSP Magazine

May 8, 2021. The “Where to Live Now” May 2021 issue of Mpls.St.Paul Magazine featured the restored beehive fireplace in Lilac Park in St. Louis Park, MN. Their ‘Found Art’ article includes remnants of Twin Cities past that are hiding in plain site. According to writer Andy Sturdevant, “The beehive fireplace from Lilac Park, now…

Take your own Lilac Way tour—three parks, eight miles, no entrance fees.

Take your own Lilac Way tour—three parks, eight miles, no entrance fees.

A summer 2021 Lilac Way tour is the perfect escape, and it’s free! Stop in at Graeser Park, Rock Island and restored Lilac Park—all located on an 8-mile stretch of Highway 100. Bring a lunch, family and friends, and see the heroic preservation efforts of dedicated volunteers and MnDOT. These three Insta-worthy historic Depression-era parks…

Lilac Way's Arthur Nichols designed Christmas Lake Park on Highway 7

Lilac Way’s Arthur Nichols designed Christmas Lake Park on Highway 7

Like Lilac Way, Christmas Lake Park was designed by Arthur Nichols, influenced by the “Rustic Style” of landscaping, and built in the 1930s under FDR’s New Deal. As a consulting landscape architect for Minnesota’s Highway Department from 1932-40, Arthur Nichols created many roadside parks. Design Significance Arthur R. Nichols (1881-1970) was considered one of MN’s…

How much did a Lilac Way stone picnic table cost in 1938?

How much did a Lilac Way stone picnic table cost in 1938?

Cool find! MnDOT’s Historic Roadside Property Program Manager noted something interesting in a 1938 MnDOT Belt Line report showing the cost of creating a Lilac Way stone picnic tables. The seven original Lilac Way parks each had these unique stone tables. The parks were built alongside Highway 100 during the Great Depression, providing work for…

Read a transcribed 1937 Hennepin County Review article, 'Splendid Highway Will be Opened Next Spring'

Read a transcribed 1937 Hennepin County Review article, ‘Splendid Highway Will be Opened Next Spring’

Transcribed in April, 2021 with original punctuation and structure, this 1937 Hennepin County Review article includes lots of interesting details. Now you can browse or search the story in easy-to-read, mobile-friendly text. Thanks to Jeanne Andersen at the St. Louis Park Historical Society for giving us this article. Hennepin County Review | December 16, 1937…

Rock Island cleared of invasive trees and shrubs, MnDOT proposes more improvements

Rock Island cleared of invasive trees and shrubs, MnDOT proposes more improvements

April 9, 2021. Rock Island has a dramatic new look! This historic Lilac Way park hasn’t seen this much action in decades. After marking protected trees and shrubs with blue ribbons, MnDOT removed diseased, damaged and invasive trees and shrubs in late March 2021. Thanks to Historic Roadside Property Program (HRPP) Manager Andrea Weber for…

Read a transcribed 1938 Minneapolis Journal article, 'Lilac Way Here Soon'

Read a transcribed 1938 Minneapolis Journal article, ‘Lilac Way Here Soon’

Kristi Gibson of the Robbinsdale Historical Society transcribed an original hard-to-read 1938 Minneapolis Journal article, and even recreated the layout. Now you can browse or search the story in easy-to-read, mobile-friendly text. Scroll down to see her replication of the article as it appeared in the newspaper. Thanks for preserving this piece of Lilac Way…

Tree removal brings light to Graeser Park's rock garden

Tree removal brings light to Graeser Park’s rock garden

3.29.21. Graeser Park got a little TLC from MnDOT this week. Four diseased and damaged volunteer trees in the rock garden were removed on Monday. They included a boxelder and mulberry on the slope near W. Broadway, and two elms near the rock garden pond. The elm roots were causing damage to the stone paths…

Rock Island: MnDOT removing diseased, damaged and invasive trees and shrubs in March 2021

Rock Island: MnDOT removing diseased, damaged and invasive trees and shrubs in March 2021

Rock Island will be getting some well-deserved TLC from MnDOT starting March 22-26. Invasive plants and trees are causing damage to the historic stone structures and deterring growth of quality plantings in Rock Island. Built during the Great Depression, it is all that remains of the original Lilac Park near Minnetonka Boulevard and Highway 100.…

Join the Graeser Park Get Together - Sunday March 7th, 11am - 1pm

Join the Graeser Park Get Together – Sunday March 7th, 11am – 1pm

Join other Lilac Way fans at historic Graeser Park on Sunday March 7th, 11am – 1pm. This is an impromptu pop up event after a long winter. The weather will be almost 50°, so let’s get out of the house to celebrate a rare warm March day in Minnesota. We could all use a diversion.…

Graeser Park's 2020 preservation by Jeannine McDonald

Graeser Park’s 2020 preservation by Jeannine McDonald

Jeannine ‘Niner’ McDonald has been volunteering to preserve Graeser Park since 2008. As a Robbinsdale Lion, she joins group cleanup days but also spends a lot of time on her own, weeding and digging in the early morning hours. Thanks to a global pandemic, this PhysEd teacher at Jenny Lind Elementary School in Minneapolis was…

KSTP's 'So Minnesota' features Lilac Way's restored beehive fireplace

KSTP’s ‘So Minnesota’ features Lilac Way’s restored beehive fireplace

KSTP-TV’s Joe Mazan profiled Lilac Park’s restored beehive fireplace for their ‘So Minnesota’ series. Their ‘So Minnesota’ stories showcase the people, places and things unique to Minnesota. In December 2020, they featured the history of Lilac Way and the restored beehive fireplace in Lilac Park in St. Louis Park, MN. Joe interviewed Karen Laukkonen of…

Rock Island needs a sponsor for MnDOT’s Highway Sponsorship Program

Rock Island needs a sponsor for MnDOT’s Highway Sponsorship Program

11.26.20. Civic groups, non-profits, businesses and individuals are urged to consider sponsorship of Rock Island. Raise the profile of your group by supporting a beloved St. Louis Park historic WPA-built wayside park. This rare Depression-era Lilac Way rock garden is all that remains of the now-lost original Lilac Park on Minnetonka Boulevard.

Take a virtual walk around Graeser Park's rare beehive fireplace

Take a virtual walk around Graeser Park’s rare beehive fireplace

11.24.20 See Graeser Park’s rare beehive fireplace in Robbinsdale, MN Take a virtual walk around Graeser Park’s rare beehive fireplace on a rare sunny November day in MN. One of only two remaining beehives built by the WPA, it’s the only one in its original location. Community efforts are growing to restore this historic Depression-era…

MnDOT plans Rock Island cleanup and stone repair in 2020-21

MnDOT plans Rock Island cleanup and stone repair in 2020-21

Great news—MnDOT’s Historic Roadside Property Program has scheduled a cleanup project for this 1939 Lilac Way park. Funding was allocated in response to park supporters After speaking with Rock Island supporters and learning of increased community interest, Historic Roadside Property Program (HRPP) Manager Andrea Weber dedicated funding to improve St. Louis Park’s Rock Island. MnDOT…

Graeser Park: MnDOT installing picnic tables, removing invasive plants in 2021

Graeser Park: MnDOT installing picnic tables, removing invasive plants in 2021

MnDOT’s Historic Roadside Property Program has committed resources to provide repairs and cleanup for this historic Lilac Way park in summer 2021. New MnDOT maintenance project will precede title transfer to City of Robbinsdale. After speaking with park supporters and seeing community enthusiasm, Historic Roadside Property Program (HRPP) Manager Andrea Weber dedicated funding to improve…

Graeser Park title transfer from MnDOT to Robbinsdale looks promising

Graeser Park title transfer from MnDOT to Robbinsdale looks promising

Sept. 7, 2020. A recent interview by Neil Pursley at CCX Media sheds new light on the long-awaited land title transfer for Graeser Park. Watch the video above or read the transcript below. You can also read the CCX article. Speaking with Robbinsdale City Manager Marcia Glick and MnDOT’s Historic Roadside Property Program Manager Andrea…

Graeser Park excavation uncovers lost 1939 staircase

Graeser Park excavation uncovers lost 1939 staircase

August 26, 2020. With a hobby background in archaeology and many volunteer hours, Robbinsdale Lion Beth Good uncovered a lost Lilac Way handcrafted stone staircase. In 2018, she uncovered the path and wall leading to the stairs and part of the V-shaped retaining wall. In 2019, Beth found the wall near staircase and the ‘Promontory…

Lilac Way featured in new video by historian Joanna Dowling

Lilac Way featured in new video by historian Joanna Dowling

7.26.20. Exciting news! Our own Lilac Way is featured in historian Joanna Dowling’s new “Along The Way: Midwest Waysides and Rest Stops” video. This well-written and researched film documents the places we stop when we are on the way to somewhere else. Scroll down to watch video The Lilac Way section starts at about 9:00,…

Restored Lilac Park's Ivory Silk Japanese tree lilac

Restored Lilac Park’s Ivory Silk Japanese tree lilac

7.6.20. Even eleven years after restoration, Lilac Park in St. Louis Park still surprises me. This Ivory Silk Japanese tree lilac (Syringa reticulata ssp. reticulata ‘Ivory Silk’) was in full bloom in late June. Located on the east side of the park between the path and beehive fireplace, it stopped me right in my tracks.…

Restored Lilac Park's lovely Ivory Silk Japanese tree lilac

Restored Lilac Park’s lovely Ivory Silk Japanese tree lilac

7.6.20. Even eleven years after restoration, Lilac Park in St. Louis Park still surprises me. This Ivory Silk Japanese tree lilac (Syringa reticulata ssp. reticulata ‘Ivory Silk’) was in full bloom in late June. Located on the east side of the park between the path and beehive fireplace, it stopped me right in my tracks.…

Telling Lilac Way stories during a pandemic

Telling Lilac Way stories during a pandemic

4.15.20. Like most, I’m isolating at home while avoiding public spaces and people. Even though I’ve had the Laukkonen Design studio in my home for ages, it’s tough. But nothing compared to the healthcare and essential workers, who struggle every day to deal with COVID-19. I’m grateful for small things—grocery delivery, and an online reunion…

Track a lilac to document climate change

Track a lilac to document climate change

April 9, 2020. With just a couple of clicks, you can help the USA National Phenology Network’s Track a Lilac citizen science project. Phenologists consider lilacs to be a crucial tool in tracking the Earth’s warming. Phenology is the science of measuring our climate with repeating biological events, such as the blooming of lilacs. Since…

A touching Lilac Way story that inspires this project

A touching Lilac Way story that inspires this project

Jan. 1, 2020. When the restorelilacway.com website re-launched in May 2018, it included a new Lilac Way stories section. Now I’ve collected many interesting memories from Lilac Way visitors. This latest story from Ed Stately is my favorite so far. He saw a Restore Lilac Way Facebook post with a beehive fireplace, and his memories…

John Zieba presents Lions Club service and Graeser Park stewardship

John Zieba presents Lions Club service and Graeser Park stewardship

Nov. 26, 2019. November’s meeting of the Robbinsdale Historical Society featured John Zieba of the Robbinsdale Lions Club. Scroll down to see photo gallery. Organized in 1939, this local Lions Club has a strong commitment to helping the community through financial support and action. All of the help they provide is either voluntary or funded…

Lilacs reblooming, confused by fall weather

Lilacs reblooming, confused by fall weather

Oct. 7, 2019. In this interesting story by Heather Brown of WCCO TV News, she talks to a Circle Pines, MN gardener with lilacs reblooming – in October! She interviews Julie Weisenhorn, an associate extension professor at the Department of Horticulture at the University of Minnesota who helps us understand this unusual phenomenon. Only the…

Wells Fargo volunteers cleanup Graeser Park

Wells Fargo volunteers cleanup Graeser Park

Oct. 4, 2019. Graeser Park was the lucky recipient of efforts by a Wells Fargo volunteer group. Beth Good, Kim Brimley, Nestor Quarshie and Jennifer Kodet joined Robbinsdale Lions Kent Brun and Rene Buchanan to help maintain this historic 1939 Lilac Way park. Wells Fargo is big on supporting communities, so they give their employees…

Restored Lilac Park featured in Nordic Ware exhibit at Norway House

Restored Lilac Park featured in Nordic Ware exhibit at Norway House

Sept. 18, 2019. Scroll down to see photos of ‘Nordic Ware: The Art & Science of the Bundt’ exhibit at Norway House. We were thrilled this exhibit featured Nordic Ware’s community involvement in Lilac Park’s restoration. The display includes the Beehive Cake Pan created for the park’s 2009 Grand Opening, a nice writeup and a…

View photos of Graeser Park structures unearthed in summer 2019

View photos of Graeser Park structures unearthed in summer 2019

August 17, 2019. The Robbinsdale Lions Club led an amazingly successful year at Graeser Park. They have unearthed many original 1939 WPA-built Lilac Way structures, including a picnic table platform, pathways to a buried staircase to Broadway Avenue, the back wall to a path wall and multiple bump-out areas. These were all designed by Landscape…

The Gateway District - From flophouses for Lilac Way workers to a Four Seasons Hotel

The Gateway District – From flophouses for Lilac Way workers to a Four Seasons Hotel

June 14, 2019. One in three adults in Minnesota were out of work during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Unemployed men lived in 15 cents/night flophouses in the ‘”Gateway District” of Minneapolis. Many were hired as Works Progress Administration (WPA) day laborers to build Highway 100 and its showcase Lilac Way section. Often called…

Non-profit group formed for future Graeser Park fundraising

Non-profit group formed for future Graeser Park fundraising

May 18, 2019. More Graeser Park good news! The new Graeser Park Restoration & Preservation (GPR&P) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization with one mission – fundraising to restore Graeser Park.

Rock Island Cleanup Day - May 2019

Rock Island Cleanup Day – May 2019

May 6, 2019. An amazing, hard-working crew showed up for the first Rock Island Cleanup Day on May 4, 2019. So much work was done in just three hours.

Lilac Way inspired by National Park Service 'Parkitecture'

Lilac Way inspired by National Park Service ‘Parkitecture’

April 14, 2019. If you’ve been to a National Park, you may have seen structures that resemble Lilac Way features. Designed by Landscape Architect Arthur Nichols,

View ‘Lilac Way Stories’ presentation online

View ‘Lilac Way Stories’ presentation online

April 12, 2019. Did you miss Karen’s ‘Lilac Way Stories’ presentation in February? Restore Lilac Way’s own Karen Laukkonen presented ‘Lilac Way Stories: History, Restoration and Graeser Park’s Beehive Fireplace’ at the February 19th meeting of the Robbinsdale Diggers Garden Club. If you missed it, you can view the full presentation. Or, just check out…

Graeser Park beehive fireplace gets protective fencing

Graeser Park beehive fireplace gets protective fencing

March 28, 2019. This can only be good news! For the first time in four months, I impulsively stopped by Graeser Park in Robbinsdale, MN. As I pulled up,

NEW LOCATION! Beehive Musical event, Sept 4, 2018

NEW LOCATION! Beehive Musical event, Sept 4, 2018

MOVED TO Wicked Wort Brewing Co. due to rain.

Join a Graeser Park clean-up on Sat. June 9, 2018 from 8-11am!

Join a Graeser Park clean-up on Sat. June 9, 2018 from 8-11am!

Love Lilac Way? Become a Graeser Park Beehiver! Join an amazing group of volunteers to give Lilac Way’s Graeser Park a cleanup, and see all the work they have already completed.

A new Lilac Way web site, and a new mission.

A new Lilac Way web site, and a new mission.

The 2007 Campaign to Restore Lilac Way has evolved into a Lilac Way living repository with a new purpose. A new restorelilacway.com mobile-ready website launched in spring 2018, with 30+ pages, hundreds of new and old photos, MnDOT inventory reports, map, and videos.

Why are they called ‘beehives’?

Why are they called ‘beehives’?

Lilac Way fireplaces were nicknamed ‘beehives’ because they look like skeps—baskets placed open-end-down—used to house bees for more than 2,000 years.

What happened to the Campaign to Restore Lilac Way?

What happened to the Campaign to Restore Lilac Way?

Life got in the way. I started that Campaign in 2006, while caring for elderly parents. In 2008, dad died. Then the recession hit, nearly wiping out this single, self-employed gal.

Lilacs tell the story of climate change.

Lilacs tell the story of climate change.

April 21, 2018. How can lilacs teach us about our environment? They’re telling us that our climate is changing. Phenologists consider lilacs to be a crucial tool in tracking the Earth’s warming. Phenology is the science of measuring our climate with repeating biological events, such as the blooming of lilacs.

When restored, Graeser Park will need some new signage.

When restored, Graeser Park will need some new signage.

When Lilac Way’s restored Lilac Park had a grand opening in St. Louis Park, MN in 2009, it included new information signage. When I designed that signage through Laukkonen Design, it featured WPA-era graphics and short blocks of info that told the story of Lilac Way and the park’s restoration.