Written by Gary Averill
A lot happened in the latter part of December and early part of January at Shingle Creek Park:
Beaver and mother nature causing havoc at the Brooklyn Center Golf course. Minneapolis Park District was asked by Brooklyn Center to clean up Shingle Creek to help alleviate a flooded golf course. So, at the end of December, the Minneapolis Park District spent over a week cleaning up the creek. After removing the main blockage and the fallen trees, the water rose over 6 inches (waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/05288705/#parameterCode=00065&period=P30D&showMedian). The creek has since gone down but still moving faster than it has in a long time. The crews also cleared the path in the forest area between the prairie area, the creek, and the ponds making it possible to walk the path once again.
Broomball is still going to happen at Shingle Creek. December was a frustrating month for the maintenance crews who are setting up the out-door broom ball courts. The crews put down a lot of water but no ice formed. It did attract a lot of geese. Now the temperatures are plummeting the maintenance crews are working seven days a week and into the night trying to create ice rinks. It has been a slow process. With temperature below 10 degrees by the end of the second week of January, this should help them get the rinks ready by the end of January. This should be the last year for broomball at Shingle Creek. Next year it will return to its old park which has been renovated.
Surveying Shingle Creek is another exciting endeavor. Several crews are working on surveying Shingle Creek to create a comprehensive map of the park including topographical. This will take a while due to how large the park is, so many elevation fluctuations, and all the different components. I believe this is the first part of renovating the park which the planning started before COVID. This park’s claim to fame is how much wildlife comes and goes through this area, and its miles of walking and bicycle paths. There is also a community center.