Hidden along the east side of Bde Maka Ska is a park that is well appreciated by those who know of it.
Walking the hillside above East Bde Maka Ska Parkway between West 36th and 34th Streets, the visitor is surrounded by the quiet, natural beauty of the woods and transported from urban life that is only a short distance away. This park shares much of its history in its name — Loon Lake Trolley Path Park.
Loon Lake
Before it was named Bde Maka Ska and before it was named Lake Calhoun, it was called Mde Mdo’za, Sioux for Lake of the Loons, or Loon Lake.
The name Mendoza was the official name until 1850 when the name changed to Calhoun. In 1890, there was an attempt to change it back to Mendoza but without success.
“The Park Board may work as hard as it can to change the name of the lake, but people won’t have it. They still call it Calhoun and they will keep on. You might as well try to change the name of Minnehaha.”
That change would have to wait until 2020 when the name changed to Bde Maka Ska, Dakota for White Earth Lake.
Trolley Path
On June 19, 1954, Minneapolis’ last streetcar ran. The city replaced the streetcars with the cheaper bus system.
The stretch of trolley line from 36th to 34th Streets West was no longer needed and was eventually acquired by the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board.
Today the 50-foot-wide parcel is part of the Chain of Lakes Regional Park.
Bde Maka Ska-Harriet Master Plan
In 2020, the Park Board approved the Southwest Park Plan and said, “This project does not include recreation centers or areas classified as regional parkland.
“The one exception is the Loon Lake Trolley Path. The plan for that park space will be amended into the Bde Maka Ska-Harriet Master Plan.”
Emma Pachuta oversees master planning in the Chain of Lakes from Lake Brownie to Lake Harriet.
Although there is no funding currently, she is working with the community to clarify a plan for the Look Lake Trolley Path park.
Pachuta says that the path reminds her of small trails at Cedar Lake: “They are regularly traveled paths. The Park Board wants to recognize and protect them so that they can stay indefinitely.” Not all are kept. “We try to be very intentional with what remains and what is returned to nature.”
When a building on one end of the park burned down in late 2022, the Park Board acquired the land, increasing its potential.
Some Chain of Lakes funding may be available in 2026-2027 to start the LLTP Park development.
East Bde Maka Ska Neighborhood Association
In the meantime, the East Bde Maka Ska Neighborhood Association oversees this passive park. They have cleared debris and put down mulch.
At their last meeting on Sept. 23, Elizabeth Shaffer attended to discuss the Trolley park. The members shared their vision to protect the natural feel where children build forts and the occasional coyote wanders through.
They did request that the Park Board tend to some basic needs like mowing. Shaffer promised to work on their needs while they wait for money to do the bigger project.
The association felt that they could create their vision with less money compared to other parks.
Shaffer agreed that “money is tight, but maybe you can come up with a better plan.” In the meantime, the association and the Park Board will work together as stewards of this land.
Shaffer said, “That is a great idea. What is the point of having park land if we aren’t using it?”
