Wayzata's Cenacle Big Woods
STATUS: PROTECTED
Map to Wayzata Big Woods
The Friends of the Wayzata Big Woods have successfully raised private financing to protect the 22 acres of the Cenacle Big Woods in Wayzata. The funding supplements a $3 million bond referendum passed in November 2003 to purchase the woods and save it from development, thereby preserving a beautiful natural area in the heart of historic Wayzata.
HOW TO GET THERE
Wayzata's Cenacle Big Woods is located at 1201 East Wayzata Boulevard, Wayzata, MN 55391. From I-394 West (Old Highway 12), exit MN 101, also known as Central Avenue North (left, towards Wayzata). At the second stoplight, take a left (Wayzata Boulevard). Wayzata's Cenacle Big Woods will be on your left in 0.1 mile.
DESCRIPTION
A broad view of the woods.
photo: Polly Norman
Wayzata's Cenacle Big Woods, a small maple-basswood forest, thrives in the heart of downtown Wayzata. Experts consider the Cenacle parcel a remnant of east central Minnesota's Big Woods biome. Once covering 3,000 square miles, the Big Woods stretched from St. Cloud through the Mankato area. Its western border included the Minnesota River all the way eastward to the western edge of the Mississippi River. These woods featured sloped and flat terrain and wetlands. Its dense thicket of basswood, maples, and oaks provided shady respite for shade-tolerant plant species.
Thousands of years of slowly decomposing plant material produced a four-foot layer of topsoil. It is no wonder that European settlers considered the Big Woods prime agricultural land. Settlers cleared much of the land for crops. Timber became a secondary industry. Deforestation of the Big Woods threatened the smaller plant species that depend on shade for their survival. Today only .01% of Minnesota's Big Woods remain.
The present-day Cenacle Big Woods includes many large trees, some as old as 120 years. Walkers can stroll through the woods to find elm, basswood, sugar maple, ash, and red oak. Its lower canopy contains shrubs of pagoda dogwood and ironwood saplings. A look at the groundcover reveals many different speciesbloodroot, cinnamon ferns, early meadow rue, false Solomons seal, Virginia waterleaf, and the rare white trout lily.
THREAT AND RESPONSE
Rising real estate values and attempts by state government to shift fiscal responsibility to local governments force cities like Wayzata to strengthen their tax base. Housing developments provide a key source of tax revenue and consequently threaten the future of natural open space like Wayzata's Cenacle Big Woods. In past years, the Wayzata City Council has turned down two development proposals due to traffic and density but has not taken steps to preserve the land in its present state.
Hikers can seek solitude
at Wayzata's Cenacle Big Woods
photo: Polly Norman
In 2002, a group of Wayzata citizens organized proceedings to finalize the status of the property. Known as The Friends of Wayzata's Big Woods, members worked with the present landowner to sign an option to buy. This act allowed a referendum to be put forth to the voters of Wayzata.
CURRENT SITUATION
On November 4, 2003, residents of Wayzata voted yes to a referendum to issue a bond worth $3.135 million to purchase 14.11 acres of the 21 acres of land. The retreat center will purchase the other 7.4 acres and the retreat buildings for $2 million.
By March 2004, supporters had raised the remaining $1.8 million needed to secure the final 6.89 acres of the land. The entire 22 acres will be placed under conservation easement held by the Minnesota Land Trust, which will protect the area from development while allowing the city to add unpaved walking paths and park benches. The Trust for Public Land worked closely with the Friends of the Wayzata Big Woods to negotiate with private land owners and the city to preserve the woods.
IF YOU WANT TO GET INVOLVED
For more information about the woods, visit The Friends of the Big Woods website at www.wayzatabigwoods.org.
LOCAL CONTACTS
Mary Bader, 952-473-2908
Richard Howell, 952-475-9343