Save the Green

I just posted a link to Save the Green website. I haven't been involved with that group however their efforts are appreciated. In the fall of 2006, a group of Beaverdale residents rallied to combat the duping of Beaverdale by the neighborhood association, school board, city council and local business leaders. Save the Green is the grass roots group that circulated petitions, met with every city council member, school board member and attended numerous public meetings regarding the saga. They have had little traction from the local media to expose the groundwork that was laid to usurp a century old public land--Rice Field for the personal gain of a Florist-turned-developer. Save the Green is appealing Judge Hanson's ruling as it sets a dangerous precedent for the transparency in Open Meetings. There are many other issues entangled with Rice Field including the questionable use of TIF in Beaverdale, the role of the neighborhood association in promoting the Boesen development, misleading the residents about revitalization in Beaverdale and the relocation of the neighborhood school to free up Rice Field for development --Main Street Initiative in Beaverdale ( and how this came to be; initiated by Tom Boesen as Beaverdale Village Revitalization Plan)--Lack of parkland in the northwest quadrant which Park Director, Donald Tripp, misrepresented at City Council meeting, of which School Board President Dick Murphy is a member) --The Boesen proposal for Rice Field was not approved of by the Plan and Zoning commission.--The lawyer for the developments of Boesen, Joe's Square and Hy Vee (all in Beaverdale) are represented by the same law firm. The Site Review Committee that selected the Boesen proposal held two closed meeting (Dick Murphy is a member of the site review committee)--Land swap: Prospect Park soccer field was paved for DMPS employee bus parking; Prospect Park was relocated to Rice Field; Rice Field was to be relocated to Hoover High School athletic field.