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Yahoo
22-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Two St. Paul parks renamed to reflect their sacred Dakota history
A pair of St. Paul parks will be renamed to reflect their sacred significance to the Dakota people. The City Council on Wednesday voted to change the names of Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary and Indian Mounds Regional Park to Wakáŋ Tipi and Wic̣aḣapi, respectively. Taken from the Dakota language, Wakáŋ Tipi translates to 'dwelling place of the sacred,' while Wic̣aḣapi means 'cemetery.' During a news conference before the vote, Mayor Melvin Carter voiced his support for the new names, which were recommended by Minnesota's Tribal Historic Preservation Offices and endorsed by the St. Paul Parks and Recreation Commission. 'These names are not just words,' Carter said. 'They're acts of remembrance and resistance, honoring the Dakota people's enduring presence and spiritual connection to this land. This action today is not about rewriting history, it's about acknowledging that the land we stand on has always had Dakota names, Dakota meaning and Dakota caretakers.' The two adjoining sites will exist as a newly designated cultural landscape called Imniżaska, which is a Dakota phrase meaning 'white cliffs' and has long been used by Dakota speakers to refer to the area that is now St. Paul. The city's Parks and Recreation department, which will install updated signage at the sites in coming months, has been working with the Native-led nonprofit Wakáŋ Tipi Awanyankapi for several years to redesign its programming at the two parks to better reflect their spiritual significance in Dakota culture. Maggie Lorenz, executive director of Wakáŋ Tipi Awanyankapi, said Wednesday that renaming the sites builds on 'the work that generations of Dakota people have done … to hold onto our culture, to preserve our history and to advocate for our sacred places.' Last October, the city announced a co-management agreement for the 27-acre Wakáŋ Tipi area with Lorenz's organization, whose 7,500-square-foot Wakáŋ Tipi Center will house an exhibit hall, classrooms, ceremonial spaces and other facilities dedicated to preserving Dakota culture when it opens in the fall. Formerly named for the late U.S. Rep. Bruce Vento, an ardent environmentalist who helped spearhead the transformation of what was a polluted former rail yard into green space, the nature sanctuary is home to Wakáŋ Tipi cave, which is revered in Dakota culture as an ancient gathering place for Native American nations. Vento's widow, Susan Vento, was consulted as part of the renaming process, according to city officials. Susan Vento did not return a message seeking comment. Carter said he believes the new name honors Bruce Vento's legacy, adding that the congressman, who died in 2000, 'was a supporter of tribal sovereignty, a supporter of treaty rights, and a champion for our environment.' The name of the trail system that begins at Wakáŋ Tipi will remain the Bruce Vento Regional Trail. The former Mounds Park, located on the bluffs overlooking Wakáŋ Tipi, contains six Native American burial mounds — the only such mounds known to exist within the urban Twin Cities. Estimated to be up to 2,400 years old, the mounds are among the oldest human-made structures in Minnesota and are venerated by Dakota, Ho-Chunk and Ioway people as a burial place of their ancestors. The city's parks department in recent years has updated its signage around the mounds to educate visitors on its long history as a cemetery and to encourage them to treat it as such. Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, who spoke alongside Carter and Lorenz before Wednesday's council vote, said renaming the sites 'acknowledges that Dakota and Native people have always been here, are still here, and will remain here into the future.' George Floyd: Minneapolis, St. Paul events mark his death, community response Climate action group schedules first Ward 4 candidate forum for Tuesday Wet weather continues on Wednesday St. Paul's parks rank fifth-best in the nation Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary likely to be renamed Wakan Tipi
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary likely to be renamed Wakan Tipi
St. Paul's Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary could soon sport a name both ancient and new — Wakan Tipi, which means 'dwelling place of the sacred' in the Dakota language. Indian Mounds Regional Park, the only known burial mounds within the urban Twin Cities, may soon be rechristened Wic̣aḣapi, or 'cemetery.' Both name changes have been recommended by the state's tribal historic preservation officers and have won the support of St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter and the city's Parks and Recreation Commission. They'll be taken up by resolution of the St. Paul City Council on Wednesday, the penultimate step before landing on the mayor's desk to become official, though the mayor planned a 3 p.m. press conference Wednesday, shortly in advance of the council vote, to announce the dual re-namings. Located east of downtown, the 27-acre sanctuary is home to spring-fed wetlands, 450 million-year-old limestone and sandstone bluffs and other natural attractions. It's also home to the Wakan Tipi cave — known to generations of Dayton's Bluff residents as Carver's Cave — which holds a special place in Dakota lore as an ancient gathering place for native nations to negotiate peaceful alliances. The sanctuary is also soon to welcome the Wakan Tipi Center, a $14.3 million cultural and environmental center under construction in the area beneath the Kellogg Boulevard/Third Street bridge. The six burial mounds are located at 10 Mounds Boulevard, overlooking the Mississippi River from the blufftop, and hold historical significance to a number of native tribes, from the Upper Sioux Community to the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska. On Wednesday afternoon, the city council is scheduled to discuss the possible renaming of both the mounds and the sanctuary, which takes its name from U.S. Rep. Bruce Vento, a teacher and East Sider who served in Congress from 1977 until his death in 2000. The nature sanctuary was named for him in 2005, when it opened. A reporter's call to Vento's family was not immediately returned Tuesday. The Parks and Rec Commission voted 8-0 in support of the dual re-namings on May 8. The council resolution is sponsored by Council Member Cheniqua Johnson, who represents Dayton's Bluff and a large section of the East Side. The renaming was recommended by the Minnesota Tribal Historic Preservation Officers 'and reflects nearly a decade of community engagement led by St. Paul Parks and Recreation's division of Design and Construction,' said the mayor's office, in a written statement. Carter planned to meet with media Wednesday to announce the renaming alongside Johnson, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, Metropolitan Council member Toni Carter, Parks and Rec Director Andy Rodriguez and Maggie Lorenz, executive director of the nonprofit Waḳaƞ Ṭípi Awanyankapi, which has led the way around planning for the Wakan Tipi Center. Letters: Preventing landlords from screening tenants is a one-sided view of our housing problem Ben Shardlow: The soon-to-close recycling plant and environs are places we should love, or learn to St. Paul: At Highland Bridge, Weidner Homes, Ryan Cos. win concessions St. Paul: Breakaway Music Festival approved for gradual volume increase What's changing with St. Paul's new rent control policy and tenant protections
