Current Status of Sunfish Lake Park Restoration project – We have successfully completed Phases 1, 2, and 3 of this DNR-CPL supported project, and have submitted a proposal for a DNR-CPL Metro Grant for Phase 4. Award Notice Date is December 31, 2026. Watch here for details.
The Friends became the first organization to officially Adopt A Park when the City of Lake Elmo began this program in Spring of 2018. Since then we have made great strides in clearing invasive buckthorn from the Park, successfully advocated for trail improvements, and sponsored Citizen Science studies of the ecology – what lives here, and how is it doing. Please scroll down for more information about these three initiatives.
BUCKTHORN REMOVAL - "RESTORATION OF SUNFISH LAKE PARK"
The “RESTORATION OF SUNFISH LAKE PARK” project has been awarded over $650,000 in grants so far!
George Johnson of Lake Elmo made a personal commitment of eight years to remove buckthorn from Sunfish Lake Park. The effort began in Summer 2018 with George leading a monthly volunteer work party to cut and pull buckthorn. To entertain the families of the workers, we made buckthorn games (from buckthorn wood) such as Croquet and Bucket Toss and dice for Yahtzee. The appeal for participants was very successful and by Fall, Connie suggested that we have a Buckthorn Festival. Bob Shaw, local reporter for the Pioneer Press, heard that we played buckthorn croquet, and put our story and picture on the front page of the paper October 9, 2018! He called SMINC “quirky” and told readers about the first Buckthorn Festival on November 10, 2018. People were invited to come and join a team, competing to see which group could cut the most buckthorn in two hours. Members of each team were given distinctive-colored head/arm bands. The workers were served a lunch of buckthorn-roasted hot dogs, chili, and all the fixings. Don came and played the accordion for atmosphere, and all had a good time. George was crowned King of the Buckthorn Warriors.
For information about mitigating other invasive plants, you can reference the Minnesota DNR’s Minnesota Noxious Weeds document.
IMPROVING THE TRAIL SIGNAGE AND MINIMIZING COLLISIONS
When the City Council added single-track mountain biking trails to Sunfish Lake Park, some of the hiking trails were deleted in accordance with the terms of a Conservation Easement held by the Minnesota Land Trust. The Friends worked with the Sunfish Lake Park Trail User Group and the Public Works Department to minimize hiking/biking intersections and to convince the City Council to declare that the trail usage for hiking and biking would be separated. This rule reduced the chance of faster-moving traffic colliding with slower moving traffic. A more logically numbered hiking trail map was also designed and installed at all intersections
