Monday, August 11, 2008

New poll: Greenway use

The new poll question is "How often do you use the Greenway?" and I'll be interested to hear from you guys on this one. Personally, I love practically everything about the Greenway, but I'm not always able to find the time to get out there and enjoy it as much as I would like. How about you? What parts of the Greenway are your favorite? Any room for improvement?

21 comments:

bjmoney said...

I'm on the Greenway a few times a week, for exercise and the scenery. I thought I saw some pot growing along the river somewhere on it, but I could be wrong...

Anonymous said...

What exactly is "the Greenway" ???

Could you define it for those of us that did not grow up here? Thanks!

Anonymous said...

I use the greenway almost everyday...sometimes more than once in a day...biking, walking, dogwalking...love it.... and Terry Bjerke can 'bite it' because there are lots and lots of citizens that use it and like it and are very happy that we have it..

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad to have it. I think there should be 3-4 more exercise paths around GF. My only complaints: There are patches where it's too rough to rollerblade (smoother pavement would be nice) and the lack of water in the winter months (presumably due to pipes freezing?)

Anonymous said...

I'm so glad to have it. I think there should be 3-4 more exercise paths around GF. My only complaints: There are patches where it's too rough to rollerblade (smoother pavement would be nice) and the lack of water in the winter months (presumably due to pipes freezing?)

Anonymous said...

The greenway is fabulous. I use it every day. It really enhances the quality of life here. In addition to the scenery and feeling like you're outside of the city, it's also an opportunity to see people at their best.

My wish list for the greenway includes dog waste bag stations (they have them at the dog park and at Turtle River State Park) and better pedestrian access on the bridge on Gateway and the bridge over to the Point. The only pedestrian-friendly bridge is on Demers. The others don't even have continuous sidewalks. Of course, there are the pedestrian bridges far north and south, but it would be nice to have ones in between too. Finally, perhaps the city could post a sign of bike/pedistrian behavior guidelines, such as how to pass. Those are also common at state parks.

Anonymous said...

Love it, use the Northend (Riverside Park area) almost daily. Southend, weekly.

OUWxGuesser said...

but it would be nice to have ones in between too. Finally, perhaps the city could post a sign of bike/pedistrian behavior guidelines, such as how to pass.

Or more generally, signs with greenway etiquette. Stopping to chat with the neighbors in the middle of the path = not cool.

Anonymous said...

Also, talk on your cellphone when you leave the Greenway.
Pretend it is 10 years ago.

Anonymous said...

I use the Greenway all the time!

AKM, there are dog waste bag stations all along the main trail in the Greenway, and also a couple in front of the dog park.

Anonymous said...

It is great to do"circle city" takes about 2 hours, from UND/Ray Ricards to WalMartto river/greenway and then along bikeway to north ped bridge and back to UND or go over to EGF and take a swim, before summer is over. Dog people carry your own plastic bag and carry you mess home with you. Thanks. greenglass4

bjmoney said...

@10:05

Its Grand Forks' nature-trail, where you can enjoy sites such as the red river, the beet plant, grass, weeds, bees and bunnies.

Anonymous said...

I love the greenway. One thing I think would be helpful would be to have recycling bins as well as garbage bins. Most of the garbage people throw away (if you peak in the garbage cans) is stuff that can be recycled anyways (water bottles etc).
But overall, I wish they just keep working on it, expanding and improving. It's one big step in making GF a nicer city.

Anonymous said...

For the comment at 10:05:
The Greenway came about as a result of the flood we had in 1997 which innundated the town.
The two cities worked with the Corps of Engineers, FEMA and others to determine the best way to use the space for future flood years and this was to get rid of the houses that flooded, push the dike systems back farther from the river, make more of a 'bowl' to catch the floodwater, and have a safe recreational alternative for outdoor use.
Some great things that have come about as a result are: The Red River State Recreation Campground area in East Grand Forks (72 site with more to come), the 2400 acres of recreational space along both sides of the river, the 2 new pedestrian bridges on the north and south sides of town, the 8 miles of continous looping paths due to these bridges, the 24 miles of other paved paths near both the Red River and the Red Lake River coming out of Minnesota, the Lincoln Dr. Park area which now houses a boat ramp, dog park and frisbee (disc golf) course along with playground equipment,warming house, picnic shelters, volleyball and horseshoes.
There are many more things to see and do along the Greenway. There is over 250 species of birds native to the area which live along there along with many more opportunities to wildlife watch.
Please get out and enjoy this jewel of our town at any time of year. In the winter there is plenty of cross country skiiing opportunities along with places to snowshoe etc.
No ATV's, snowmobiles or horses allowed on the Greenway system please!

Anonymous said...

If I were to try x-country skiing on the greenway would I get cut in half by a speeding snowmobile?

Matt BK said...

I've only rarely encountered snowmobiles on the Greenway, and they didn't come near enough to be afraid I would be run over. Most of the time they stay on the river. If you're out at dusk, it's usually good to have a light on you (in the winter or the summer, just to be safe).

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the explanation, we are new here and its good to hear the local history from an insiders perspective. We live in EGF but kinda stumbled upon the south bridge and a few miles of the trails by accident one day while out riding. We live on the undeveloped trail side of town but I still find the wall and the trails to be quite fascinating and beautiful. We happened upon a family of ducklings right past the golf course which was rather cool. I would love to explore it more...and love the scenic tour that the traveling guy is offering us without the pain of lugging the kids in the bike trailer :) Thanks Man!

Anonymous said...

Spearman says,

A bit of bike trail trivia.
The state of Mn. State Park guide contains a chart showing the various amenities of the 72 parks in MN. Under the category of paved bike trails the RRRA is listed as having the most miles. Of course this # is arrived at by including the total miles in the GF/EGF system as a part of the park's trail. I don't know if that was a conscious inclusion by Mn. or if someone in EGF/GF managed to slip it by as a bit of propaganda for the RRRA.
Spearman

Anonymous said...

Too funny: comment Friday on KNOX Radio: by Greg to Mac (subject was NASCAR and racing at River Cities Speedway)Greg said that Mac would be mayor of GF if he went to Fri night races, he lost 1,000 votes by not going, Curt K goes. Well it seemed funny at the time.greenglass4

Anonymous said...

anonymous, Mac might need to go to the races, I hope he runs again in the next election...

After the is whole light debacle it is obvious that Brown is not the man to lead this town.

Anonymous said...

Mayor Brown had little to do with the lights. It was a committee that approved it and on that committee was the self-appointed Mayor's nemesis, Rant-of-Dakota-Huseby herself. So don't blame the mayor.