A local environmental conservation nonprofit has secured a $9,980 grant to study the former Boys Totem Town property.
Lower Phalen Creek Project announced this week that it plans to use the Minnesota Historical Society Legacy Grant to assess the 72-acre site’s cultural, historical and environmental significance. The report will be used to inform preservation needs and suggest development options.
“A huge part of the work we are doing now is focused on reconnecting Dakota people to their lands, sacred sites, and burial sites in the city,” said Maggie Lorenz spokesperson for the nonprofit.
The acreage is the former home of Boys Totem Town, a residential treatment facility for adolescent boys that operated for over a century in the Battle Creek Neighborhood of St. Paul. Ramsey County closed the site in 2019, citing declining enrollment. The facility normally had served between 20 and 30 youth. By the time it closed in August, there were six enrolled.
Since the closing, Ramsey County has been working with St. Paul, the District 1 Community Council and other stakeholders to determine a potential future use of the land and buildings.
The MHS Legacy Grant program is a state-funded process to provides financial support for projects focused on preserving Minnesota’s history and culture.
According to the Lower Phalen Creek Project, much of the land is a degraded Oak Savanna. Lorenz hopes to find a connection on the site to the Dakota people that can be incorporated into its future development.
