Agenda - Parks and Recreation Commission - 10/09/2014

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Components of the Regional Parks System are categorized into four major components. These four components are regional parks, park reserves, regional trails, and special recreation features. Regional Parks Areas selected for regional parks should contain a diversity of nature -based resources, either naturally occurring or human - built. The recreational quality of a regional park is measured by the presence or absence of outstanding natural resources and the ability to provide adequately for a wide range of natural resource - related recreational opportunities. Access to water bodies suitable for recreation — such as swimming, boating and fishing — is particularly important and most of the regional parks are focused on lakes, rivers or streams. A regional park should be large enough to accommodate a variety of activities, preserve a pleasant natural aspect, and buffer activity areas from each other and from surrounding areas. This is interpreted as requiring 200 to 500 acres of land. Occasionally, because of the quality of the resource, an exception may be made and a regional park may be as small as 100 acres. Experience has shown this to be the minimum size acceptable for the range and type of activities expected to be accommodated. As of 2014, there are 41 regional parks developed and open to the public, including Whitetail Woods Regional Park in Dakota County, which will open in the fall of 2014. These regional parks are listed in Table 3 -2 and shown on Figure 3 -2. Table 3 - 2. Regional Parks Open to the Public (2014) Regional Parks 1 Anoka County Riverfront Regional Park 2 Bunker Hills Regional Park 3 Lake George Regional Park 4 Martin- Island- Linwood Lakes Regional Park 5 Mississippi West Regional Park 6 Rum River Central Regional Park 7 Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park 8 Baylor Regional Park 9 Lake Minnewashta Regional Park 10 Lake Waconia Regional Park 11 Lake Byllesby Regional Park 12 Lebanon Hills Regional Park 13 Whitetail Woods Regional Park 14 Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park 15 Minneapolis Chain -of -Lakes Regional Park 16 Minnehaha Regional Park 17 Nokomis - Hiawatha Regional Park 18 Theodore Wirth Regional Park 19 Mississippi Gorge Regional Park 20 North Mississippi Regional Park Regional Park Implementing Agency Anoka County Anoka County Anoka County Anoka County Anoka County Anoka County Anoka County /Three Rivers Carver County Carver County Carver County Dakota County Dakota County Dakota County Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board Minneapolis /Saint Paul Minneapolis/Three Rivers