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15 <br />INVENTORY OF THE SYSTEM <br />INVENTORY <br />With over 500 acres of city parkland and more <br />than 80 miles of trails, Lake Elmo has quite an <br />extensive park and trail system for residents and <br />visitors to enjoy and explore. In late 2023, the <br />planning team and city staff had an opportunity <br />to conduct an inventory of the city’s substantial <br />park and trail system to better understand each <br />park’s existing amenities and features, as well as <br />record the condition/state they’re currently in. With <br />an updated and in-depth inventory of Lake Elmo’s <br />many parks, trails, and open spaces, the city will <br />be able to better track the condition of their park <br />equipment and implement a plan and timeline for <br />their continued maintenance and replacement. <br />Currently, Lake Elmo’s park and trail system <br />supports a variety of recreational opportunities, <br />including organized sports, casual play, nature <br />appreciation, hiking, cross-country skiing, horseback <br />riding, picnicking, relaxing, and many other <br />outdoor activities. Each park in the system provides <br />quality recreation facilities and open spaces for <br />the community to use while still maintaining the <br />history, setting, character, and use that makes each <br />park unique. <br />To better understand how well Lake Elmo is meeting <br />the recreational needs of the community, each <br />park’s assets (e.g., natural resources, recreational <br />facilities, amenities, etc.) and issues (e.g., <br />environmental limitations, infrastructure problems, <br />accessibility, etc.) were identified during the <br />park inventory process. Some key takeaways and <br />insights drawn from the park inventory process <br />include: <br />• Park acreage and distribution and trail mileage <br />in Lake Elmo are good; most of the gaps in park <br />and trail connectivity occur in the north-central <br />and southeastern portions of the city <br />• Lake Elmo has a nice variety of park types, <br />including mini parks, neighborhood parks, <br />community parks, and a Washington County <br />regional park, all of which serve the community <br />in important ways <br />• Lake Elmo’s park facilities and amenities <br />are generally in good, working condition; <br />however, some park features (e.g., playgrounds, <br />ballfields, shelters, etc.) are currently not <br />meeting the needs of the community or not <br />functioning to meet demand <br />• Park and trail connectivity is reduced by a lack <br />of wayfinding, infrastructure restraints, and <br />unsafe pedestrian crossings on busy streets <br />Figure 3.2: Planning team and city staff inventorying the park and trail system