Bemidji City Council approves pedestrian demonstration project, 2nd phase of Natural Playground

The Bemidji Pioneer, Minn.
·3 min read

Aug. 16—BEMIDJI — During its regular meeting on Monday, the

Bemidji City Council

approved a demonstration project for the intersection of Gould Avenue and First Street and accepted a quote for the second phase of the Natural Playground at North Country Park.

A collaboration between the Minnesota Department of Health, Headwaters Regional Development Commission and other community organizations that aims to improve pedestrian experiences in the Nymore area, called the Walkable Community Workshop Group, gave a report during the meeting.

During the presentation, the group shared an idea that came from a virtual workshop that was held in April to gather public feedback on walkability in the southern part of Bemidji. It invited different perspectives and ideas on what could be done to make the area more comfortable and safe for pedestrians and cyclists.

Their proposal was to add a demonstration project to make crossing the intersection of Gould Avenue and First Street safer, particularly for school children walking to Lincoln Elementary.

The demonstration project would consist of temporary crosswalks to improve the visibility of people crossing the road and would also aim to slow traffic speeds.

After receiving council approval during the meeting, it will be installed on Aug. 31 and will be taken down in October before snow begins to accumulate.

"This demonstration will, I hope, allow children to walk across First Street safely, because that's a really busy street," said Melissa Fahrenbruch of the Greater Bemidji Joint Planning Board.

Community feedback is welcomed on the project, along with further suggestions. Comments can be left on the

HRDC's website

under the Bemidji Walkable Community Workshop page.

The city council also approved a quote for the

second phase of the Natural Playground Project

for North Country Park, a collaboration between the city's Parks and Recreation Department and the Bemidji Rotary Club.

A quote from Frenzel Construction was approved, for a total of $19,580. This was an alternate quote from the company that did not include the asphalt trail, which would have added $50,000 more to the price.

After a brief discussion, the council chose to proceed with the alternate quote and pursue finishing the trail at a later date.

The Bemidji Rotary is planning on donating $17,000 for the second phase of the park, and also has a grant from the Neilson Foundation totaling $36,165.

While construction was originally planned to be completed by September or October of 2022, this might be pushed back until spring of 2023.

The first phase of the playground, which was completed in August of 2021, was recently recognized with an

award of excellence from the Minnesota Recreation and Parks Association.

Along with volunteer hours, the park was constructed with the help of a $36,000 donation from the Bemidji Rotary Clubs.

The first phase included native plants and multiple play spaces, most of which are made of natural materials. The second phase will add on a "fallen timbers" play area for children to enjoy.