Ramsey County is eyeing a former golf course and two largely undeveloped sites for redevelopment near the St. Paul-Maplewood border. They're grappling with a big question: How can we create the housing the Twin Cities needs, while also preserving the homes of other species whose populations are collapsing? FMR River Corridor Director Colleen O'Connor Toberman says we can have both.

In this article, shortly before Rep. McCollum introduced the Mississippi River Restoration and Resilience Initiative to Congress, FMR's Executive Director Whitney Clark was quoted: "We need a coordinated, holistic approach, one that respects and supports local solutions.”

Before Opus canceled their plan, FMR supported Opus in revising early development proposals around stormwater drainage, setbacks from the bluff and the building’s height.

FMR Executive Director Whitney Clark and Congresswoman Betty McCollum's commentary in the StarTribune says it’s time for Congress to make the same commitment to the Mississippi River as they have to Puget Sound, Chesapeake Bay, and the Everglades.

Opus Development continues to pursue a plan for senior housing at this Lilydale river bluff site. This article mentions that in 2019, we advocated for better protection of the bluff and view; the developer revised their plans, doubling the setback from the bluff’s edge.

FMR ecologist Alex Roth gave an update about our restoration progress at Vermillion River Linear Park, including info about the recent cedar and spruce shoreline stabilization project that will reduce erosion.

Community advocates recently secured a big victory: Minneapolis leaders committed to an environmental review of its riverfront Upper Harbor Terminal redevelopment plan before voting on the project. Colleen O’Connor Toberman, river corridor program director, wants the delay to create an opportunity for the plan to "respond to Northsiders first and foremost.”