The park staff have been working to add this ecologically important 40-acre property for more than a decade. It includes a marshland that connects with the park’s pond and lies adjacent to farmland. The landowner was receiving offers from a commercial sod farmer and other developers. If sold, any new owners would inherit an easement to allow building a road across park property, impairing the park’s ecological integrity.
Parks & Trails Council of Minnesota stepped up to acquire the property in October 2020 to secure it for the park. In April 2022, upon the county receiving a grant from the MnDNR, it was conveyed and officially added as parkland.