We’ve made history! St. Louis Park has voted to accept Rock Island Park’s south parcel from MnDOT for no fee, and to buy the park’s north parcel for $187,000. On May 1, 2023 the St. Louis Park City Council voted on the much-anticipated resolution to save Lilac Way’s historic Rock Island Park on 28th and…
Rock Island Park, Sept. 8, 2021. Looking east over the rock garden, one of only two left in MN. Rock Island Park, Sept. 8, 2021. Looking north to the park's open meadow. Here are the latest Rock Island Park updates from MnDOT’s West Area Engineer and the Engineering Director of the City of St. Louis…
Christmas Lake Park, Shorewood, MN. April 30, 2021. Overlook wall on N side of Hwy. 7. Designed by Arthur Nichols. Christmas Lake Park, Shorewood, MN. April 30, 2021. Council ring wall on S side of Hwy. 7. Designed by Arthur Nichols. Like Lilac Way, Christmas Lake Park was designed by Arthur Nichols, influenced by the…
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…
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…
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,…
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…
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…
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…
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,