CALLING ALL FRIENDS of the EAGAN CORE GREENWAY !

The school year is over. The graduation receptions have ended. We still have some breathing room before mid-summer is upon us.

HERE IS YOUR CHANCE TO PARTICIPATE IN ACTIVITIES TO
SECURE CAPONI ART PARK FIRMLY WITHIN THE EAGAN CORE GREENWAY

BACKGROUND:

On May 4th, the Eagan City Council approved the purchase of the Anderson property, nine acres of land, to be added to Patrick Eagan Park. The City's approval marks the culmination of well over a year of work by the City, Friends of the Eagan Core Greenway, Trust for Public Land (TPL, a national non-profit conservation organization), Dakota County, and the DNR. The Anderson property was an important proving ground for Friends of the Eagan Core Greenway, which is looking to establish a track record for future preservation efforts. Friends is pleased to have the Anderson victory under its belt and will now concentrate on working with the City and TPL to preserve the Caponi Art Park for future generations.

DETAILS:

We are asking for interested members to participate in a neighborhood canvassing event to educate the community and ask for donations towards the purchase of the Caponi Art Park. Each individual will be assigned a street or two in their neighborhood with the goal of collecting roughly 20 donations. The success of the canvassing will not be measured by the amount of the donation but by the number of individuals caring enough to donate.

Please email our coordinator, Susan Gauer at SBGauer @ aol.com or call her at (651)-681-0624 if you are interested in participating. She will discuss with you what streets you would be interested in covering or if you are open to an assignment. The prime area to be targeted will be in proximity to the Art Park. You will be provided with supply packet that contains a flier covering all the details for the campaign and a sheet to track all of the contributions. A modest donation may be suggested, thus placing emphasis on overall community participation. Having twenty volunteers cover 25 houses each represents contact with 500 families, so we should not underestimate the tremendous educational and grassroots support value of this outreach.

Due to they busy nature of summer, we are focusing our efforts over a 3 week period. Packets should be available by this weekend. We will ask for all information to be returned by July 17th, 2004. More information will be distributed as the campaign kicks off (e.g., a copy of the flier will be viewable on our Web site).

It looks to be a great fund drive with a substantial impact. The more we can impress upon the City of Eagan and others our love of such natural treasures, the more support we can garner from the Council, the County, the State and other non-profit funding sources in order to continue our drive for the long-term acquisition and preservation of the Caponi Art Park.

We look forward to your continuing support.

Thank you!

---Jack Conrad

Friends of the Eagan Core Greenway Board Member

www.EaganCoreGreenway.org