New Bike Trail is Open

If you didn't think that residents of the Lake Minnetonka area had enough recreational amenities, there is now one more to enjoy. The Dakota Bike Trail is complete from Navarre west past Mound and Gale Woods Farm to St. Bonifacious, and is nearly complete from Navarre east to Wayzata. It is a paved trail that runs through wooded areas and city centers. The paved piece is nice for those who ride road bikes or like to rollerblade. While I'll always be partial to our "home" trail, the north leg of the LRT trail that cuts through Tonka Bay, Excelsior, Greenwood, and Deephaven, the Dakota is nice to have as an option.

You can catch the trail by cycling on Hwy 19 (wide shoulder) 4 miles north of Excelsior, or about 3 miles north of where the LRT trail intersects with Hwy 19 in Tonka Bay. You'll meet the trail just before the Lord Fletcher's turnoff.

South Lake Minnetonka: An Active Place

The South Lake area will once again play host to many active events this spring and summer. As we have noted on this blog before, these events are a nice change of pace for the community, and bring a respectful group of people to the area who may not otherwise come. Each summer, we can count on having the boating crowds, tour boat crowds, festival crowds, bar crowds, and wedding reception crowds in the area on a regular basis. Adding the active crowd to that list adds a new dimension of visitors, and uses the South Lake area in more of an off-peak manner (most of these events take place early on weekend mornings, when most people are still sleeping off the evening before).

Here is a partial list of active pursuits in the area, and we'll try to keep this updated:

Sunday, April 27: Excelsior Criterium Bicycle Race. This is a sanctioned bike event put on in conjunction with Excelcycle, the local bike shop. First event of its kind in the area.

Sunday, May 4: Wells Fargo Half Marathon. Begins in downtown Wayzata, runs along the western edge of lower Lake Minnetonka, through Navarre and Tonka Bay, and ends in downtown Excelsior. Registration Full.

Saturday, June 21: Lake Minnetonka Triathlon. Start / Finish line is at the Excelsior Commons. This event is fast becoming a premier Twin Cities Triathlon. Sprint distance - .5 mile swim, 15 mile bike, 3 mile run.

Saturday, June 7: Wenmarks ALARC Legends 5K and 10K run race, Deephaven. Annual event.

Wednesday, July 4: Firecracker 10K and 2 mile run. Excelsior. Popular, well-attended event.

Saturday, August 2: Tour de Tonka. 15, 33, and 65 mile bike ride, beginning at the Deephaven Education Center. In its 3rd year, it has become a very popular cycling event regionally.

Wayzata Bay Center

It looks like the south shore of Lake Minnetonka is not alone in handwringing over what the new development should look like. Our friends on the north side of the lake are entertaining the third proposal in five years to redevelop the Wayzata Bay Center.

http://www.mnsun.com/articles/2007/11/16/news/wz15baycenter.txt

Wayzata is obviously on a different scale than the hamlets on the south shore, but the issue is not all that different: How much leeway on factors such as density or building height should be given to an "anchor" project, one that will set the tone of the community for decades to come. It isn't unlike Tonka Bay taking great care in what happens at the Tonka Bay Center, or Excelsior being careful about what goes in on Water Street, or Deephaven being cautious when it comes to new development at Chowen's Corner.

While we can sometimes be too restrictive to developers who want to use their resources and creativity to help improve our cities, there is a reason for due process on big projects like this. What the Wayzata Bay Center redevelopment is asking for -- a height variance of nearly 100% for starters -- will require careful consideration and community input. In the end, I think the entire community (which I consider the south shore to be part of) will benefit from the Wayzata Bay Center location being thriving and energetic, however that may best occur.