Parks, Trails & Recreation Master Plan

EXISTING PARK CONDITIONS (AND CONTEXT) 1 THE LANDING WEST ENTRANCE AND GRAVEL PARKING LOT 2 WEST END VISITORS CENTER AT THE LANDING 3 THE LANDING

17 CHAMBER OF COMMERCE 18 RESTROOM BUILDING 19 SAND VOLLEYBALL COURT 20 OPEN AIR PARK SHELTER 21 WEST PARKING LOT

4 MONASTERY AT THE LANDING 5 POND MILL AT THE LANDING 6 AMAZON FULFILLMENT CENTER 7 SHAKOPEE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION 8 MISSISSIPPI RIVER BANK FLATS 9 MEMORIAL PARK 10 OPEN AIR PARK SHELTER 11 EXTANT / VISIBLE INDIGENOUS BURIAL MOUNDS 12 EAST PARKING LOT

22 ENGINEERED SPILLWAY + FISHING DOCK 23 BACKWATERS OF THE MINNESOTA RIVER 24 FARIBAULT SPRINGS (WAKANHDI TOPA WIWI) 25 POND’S MISSION HOUSE FOUNDATION REMNANTS 26 FORMER FARIBAULT CABIN SITE AND BURIAL SITE

27 DANGERFIELD’S RESTAURANT 28 MOBILE HOME COMMUNITY 29 USED CAR SALES LOT 30 KNOWN DAKOTA BURIAL SITE 31 MINNESOTA RIVER FLOODPLAIN

13 SITE OF FORMER PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE 14 TRADITIONAL STYLE PLAYGROUND

15 VETERAN’S MEMORIAL 16 COBRA HELICOPTER

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EXISTING PARK CHARACTER AND HISTORY Anchoring the center of the riverfront in the City of Shakopee is Memorial Park and The Landing, an appropriate metaphor for how the cultural history of this area was formed. The fresh, cool water continually provided by Faribault Springs (Wakanhdi Topa Wiwi) was one of the many reasons people chose to settle on this part of the Minnesota River Valley. Fertile land along the river from yearly floodwater sediment deposits was conducive to agricultural cultivation for communities, and the river itself was a landmark that trading routes in the area followed. At the edge of the historic Big Woods forest, this area provided hunting and cover in the forest, but plenty of space for building a village in the open savanna. As elaborated upon in Chapter 1, humans have called this place home for thousands of years. Their impact and traces are still visible to this day, and are especially evident in lesser disturbed areas of Memorial Park and The Landing. There is a complex and dynamic character to these modern spaces; upon entering the area via car, the Highway 101 corridor is wide and industrial. It is challenging to

(THE LANDING CONTINUES EAST)

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