In another busy week for the Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission, three more Master Planning Workshops were held across the state. On Monday, Executive Director Renee Mattson, System Plan Coordinator Joe Czapiewski along with Commissioners Tim Kennedy and Keith Nelson held a workshop for District 1 in Duluth. In Morris on Wednesday, Commissioners Peg Furshong and Mike Hulett joined Czapiewski for a District 3 workshop. Finally, on Thursday Commissioner Tom Schmitz joined Czapiewski for a District 5 workshop in New Ulm. District Planning Committee meetings were held alongside each workshop, which have become a Commission tradition over the last three years.

One final Master Plan Workshop remains, on Wednesday, May 3 at 3:00 in the Wright County Park and Recreation Offices in Buffalo. If you haven't been able to attebd the other workshops, please join District 4 for this last opportunity for an in-person learning experience focusing on Unit Master Plan creation and the use of the online Master Planning portal, as well as the basics about the GMRPTC application process.

This week, officials from the Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission met with local representatives to tour potential project sites along the regionally-designated Red Lake River Water Trail. Several cities, counties, and a watershed district have spent over ten years developing the original concept and master plan. The tour was an opportunity to see priority river access, camping and recreation sites for future improvement. District 2 Commissioner Bryan Pike, Executive Director Renee Mattson, and System Plan Coordinator Joe Czapiewski participated in the tour.

Due to scheduling conflicts, the date for the District 4 Application/Master Plan workshop has changed to May 3rd - location and time is the same. All other workshops remain as originally publicized. Please remember that this year, these FREE workshops will focus on Master Plan creation in the updated online Master Plan portal. Please share this information with other interested parties in Greater Minnesota.

Here is the complete workshop schedule. See the attached, updated flyer for details.
April 17  12:30 - 2:30  District 6  Owatonna
April 18  2:30 - 4:30  District 2  Bemidji
April 24  2:30 - 4:30  District 1  Duluth
April 26  1:30 - 3:30  District 3  Morris
April 27  10:00 - Noon  District 5  New Ulm
May 3  3:00 - 5:00  District 4  Buffalo  *Changed from earlier date

If you have any questions, please contact System Plan Coordinator Joe Czapiewski at 218-556-3651.

​The Greater Minnesota Regional Parks and Trails Commission will be holding a series of District workshops in late April. This round of workshops is geared towards helping park and trail planners, managers and advocates utilize the Commission’s online Master Planning portal, which has been updated for 2017. Information about the GMRPTC regional designation application, process and funding requirements will also be reviewed. Please see the attached flyer for more information and workshop details.