Kingfield Neighborhood Association

Unveiling the Power of Produce (PoP) Program at the Kingfield Farmers Market

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This fall, the Kingfield Farmers Market debuts their newest venture, the Power of Produce (PoP) Club, funded by the Kingfield Neighborhood Association. This dynamic pilot program aims to engage and inspire children aged 4–12, opening up a world of food exploration and promoting healthier eating habits.

PoP Club participants receive a weekly $2 token to use on an array of fresh fruits, vegetables, and even food-producing plants. By placing the purchasing power in their hands, the program encourages wise food choices while fostering a deeper connection between our community and the local food system. Alongside the token-based system, the Market is crafting an engaging lineup of activities that include food tastings, kids’ activities and a farmers market scavenger hunt!

Join us September 17 at the Kingfield Farmers Market, as we celebrate the launch of the PoP Club with a special POP-off event sponsored by the Lyndale Neighborhood Association intended to highlight local businesses in our area. Together, we’ll cultivate a healthier future for our children, our community, and our local farmers.

Kingfield Garden Tour Thursday July 13

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How do you Garden Tour in Kingfield?

  1. Start at any garden on the map!
  2. Introduce yourself to the homeowner who has volunteered their site as a garden-stop.
  3. Visit as many gardens as you want between 5:30-7:30 PM on Thursday July 13.
  4. End your tour anytime between 7-8:30 PM at Butter Bakery Cafe (also a stop on the tour showing off their new Pollinator garden!) to enjoy treats and conversation with neighbors and fellow-gardeners! $5 per family donation is asked to cover the cost of treats and all proceeds will be used to support KFNA’s volunteers who grow food at the MLK Park Donation Garden & Orchard!

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Signs of the south Nicollet Pollinator Pathway!

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Signs of Pollinator Pathway will be popping up through the neighborhood in early June so keep your eyes peeled for the happy bee signs!

We are planting over 50 garden stops for the Rusty Patched Bumblebee through the Lyndale, Kingfield, and Tangletown neighborhoods! Bees will know where to stop because each garden will have similar flowers blooming at the same time and these tiny native bees feed on “constancy” (kind of like a picky toddler who will only eat plain noodles for an entire two weeks, who then hates them and will only eat hotdogs!)

Thank you neighbors for sharing in this work with us to create a tasty neighborhood for pollinators!

MLK Park: A Survey About Adding New Features

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Rank the projects!

The MLK Park Master Plan was finalized by the Minneapolis Park and Recreation board in 2019. A master plan for a park includes a 20-30 year plan for the parks in the area, including existing features and proposed design features. MLK Park is ranked #62 of 152 parks so any improvements or additions to this park will be at least six years out. However, there is a way to get new park features added sooner! Features that are included in the Master Plan for a park are easier to get approved by the Park Board.

Additionally, the Kingfield Neighborhood has $316,442 available in Park Dedication fees. Park Dedication fees are dollars paid by housing developers to the Minneapolis Park Board for new amenities to serve the new neighborhood residents. The price paid is roughly $1700 per unit of market rate housing and the money must be spent within the neighborhood where the housing was constructed. Park dedication fee expenditures are ultimately determined by the Park Board, but the neighborhood organization can make recommendations.

The Kingfield Neighborhood Association (KFNA) has determined it is beneficial to use this Park Dedication money sooner rather than waiting for inclusion of the park in a larger planning process, as the value of the funds are declining with inflation. KFNA has further identified a minimum of $42,000 additional dollars of Kingfield NRP funding and restricted dollars held by KFNA that could be used toward a park project resulting in an investment of at least $358,500. Thus, KFNA has evaluated the Master Plan for projects that fit the criteria for using Park Dedication funding. This criteria includes:

  • it is a new feature
  • it is included in the Master Plan
  • it could be implemented using a combination of Park Dedication fees and KFNA NRP dollars.

KFNA requests that neighbors rank the following three projects as to their preference for securing a dedicated Park Board Planner for detailed planning of the select element(s) in 2024 and implementation in 2025. There is limited detail in the master plan, so there is room for minor changes (such as moving an amenity), provided it does not conflict with other elements of the plan without then identifying where the other feature would be placed. A recommendation from the neighborhood organization will help to prioritize the project for which a detailed plan will be developed.

Link to the survey here: https://bit.ly/MLKParkSurvey2023