Local leaders gathered this week for a ribbon-cutting that signaled the completion of several improvements at the former Thompson Oaks golf course site, including a restored wetland and a new segment of the River to River Greenway trail.
Improvements complete at former Thompson Oaks golf course
Thompson Oaks, West St. Paul's only municipal golf course, closed in 2018.
August 25, 2023 at 11:00AM
Thompson Oaks, West St. Paul's only municipal golf course, closed in 2018. The site, which once included a natural wetland, had been filled in with contaminated soil and other materials before the golf course's construction, according to a Dakota County news release. The project involved removing about 200 truckloads of that contaminated soil.
Now, the wetland is back, along with a small creek. The news release said the area has become a "model regional stormwater treatment system" with about 25% of West St. Paul's total runoff flowing through it on its way to the Mississippi River.
The project also added a new segment of the River to River Greenway and a boardwalk with views of the restored wetland.
The nearly $6 million project was funded with $4.5 million from the county's American Rescue Plan Act allocation, with the city contributing $700,000 and the state chipping in $575,000 from its Clean Water Fund.
These Minnesotans are poised to play prominent roles in state and national politics in the coming years.
