FMR to assist efforts to protect key parcel in Fish Creek Natural Area Greenway

Your help is needed to help protect a key parcel that will connect existing protected land within the Fish Creek Natural Area Greenway.

The City of Maplewood and partners are trying to preserve a 70-acre site on the Mississippi River bluffs in south Maplewood, known as the Fish Creek parcel.

This beautiful site is within the Fish Creek Natural Area Greenway and is part of the Mississippi River Flyway. From the bluff top, you can look out over the Mississippi River Valley to the far western horizon. The open rolling hills are graced with oak and aspen woodlands, old pastures, and a small prairie remnant or two. The site is home to raptors, songbirds, and wildlife species such as fox, coyote, deer and opossum.

Protecting this parcel will increase the buffer for Fish Creek, preserve wildlife habitat, provide public access to the bluff top, enhance access to existing county open space, and provide a segment of land needed for the Fish Creek Hiking Trail.

Maplewood and its partners need to raise an additional $629,000 to meet the $2,160,000 purchase costs. We hope most of that will come from grants. In early 2012, a group of dedicated volunteers formed the Fish Creek Committee and set a goal of raising $100,000 from individuals and local businesses to help with acquisition. The Committee needed a non-profit partner to receive and process contributions donations and asked Friends of the Mississippi River for help.

FMR has stepped in to serve a very unique role. With its years of experience in fundraising for environmental protection, it has the systems in place to process charitable donations. The Fish Creek Committee has scheduled a series of events and fundraising activities for 2012. Contributions generated by those will be processed by FMR. To donate, visit FMR.org/fishcreek. To learn more about the project, visit the City of Maplewood's Fish Creek webpage.