12/04/2025
ACTION ALERT: TRAILS AT STAKE! CITY COUNCIL VOTE 12/8/25 6PM PLEASE READ......
An important Ordinance will be voted on at the Duluth City Council meeting on Monday, December 8th, 2025, at 6pm. This vote will directly impact many of Duluth’s premier trails, including the Superior Hiking Trail, the Duluth Traverse, and the most heavily used nordic ski trails at Piedmont Park and Lester Park.
The Ordinance, intended to transfer the defunct Lester Golf Course to DEDA, has been tied to a separate St. Louis County Land Transfer involving a minimum of 1500 acres of greenspace within the city. That land transfer has been in progress for decades and is critical to permanently protecting key recreation areas (those listed above) and securing Duluth’s reputation as one of the best outdoor communities in the country. Most users assume prime assets like the Duluth Traverse, S*T, and ski trails are on protected park land. In fact, in many places, including at Lester, Piedmont, Brewer Park, and Mission Creek, they are not! This land could be returned to the county for development at any time. The land transfer will fix that. You can find a map of those land transfers here.
The 1500 acre transfer was unanimously approved by the Duluth City Council in 2021 but finalizing it requires a zoning change to Park Land (P1) to ensure long-term protection from development or future sale. This work is decades in the making and is now at the one-yard line, but it's being used as leverage to force the sale of the Lester Golf Course. It cannot be emphasized enough how important it is that this land transfer process be completed.
However, these are two separate issues that should NOT be connected.
First, the transfer of the Lester Golf Course to DEDA, contingent on a robust Land Use Study led by DEDA, is an unusual and unprecedented process. The change in procedure is extremely concerning to many DAOA members, as it circumvents an already established public input process.
Second, the rezoning of the 1500 acres, crucial recreation land, to Park Land (P-1) must be completed. This land has already been acquired by the city but lacks the protective park designation it was promised. This process has been stalled by the current administration with no communication or clear plan to finalize this unanimously approved project.
These two unrelated issues have been linked together as part of a Quid Pro Quo deal between the administration and the Duluth City Council.
We need folks to show up at the City Council meeting and urge council to:
Protect the 1500 acres of beloved city greenspace, regardless of what happens at the Lester Golf Course.
Ensure that a Lester Golf Course Land Use Study done by DEDA includes equal representation from the recreation and conservation communities, not just development interests.
Reject the practice of tying unrelated issues together, which undermines transparency, good governance, and community trust.
The City Council meeting is Monday December 8th at 6pm. Please show up and share your concerns. You must arrive prior to 6 pm and sign your name on a list in order to speak. Also, please write or call your City Councilor directly. Here are the email addresses of all the Councilors and a map of council districts.
Arik Forsman [email protected]
Azrin Awal [email protected]
Deb Deluca [email protected]
Wendy Durrwachter [email protected]
Janet Kennedy [email protected]
Lynn Marie Nephew [email protected]
Roz Randorf [email protected]
Tara Swenson [email protected]
Terese Tomanek [email protected]
Lastly feel free to contact the Mayor directly at 218-730-5230 and at his email address: [email protected]
