StoryAugust 14, 2025

Walking every park in Woodbury

Meeting date: Aug 14, 2025
Published Aug 29, 2025

{\"article\":{\"headline\":\"Woodbury Resident Walks Nearly Every City Park\",\"body\":\"A Woodbury woman and her dog have made it their mission to explore nearly every park in the city's extensive system, visiting almost 50 parks since September 2023.\\n\\nKathy Stevenson was inspired to walk all of Woodbury's parks after seeing a television interview with someone who had visited every state park. Armed with her constant companion, a dog named Melodee, Stevenson set out to discover what her own community had to offer.\\n\\n\\\"I saw a person on TV that was being interviewed that walked all the state parks, and I thought, I wonder if I could walk all the parks in Woodbury,\\\" Stevenson said. \\\"So I went to the website and I clicked on the parks and I thought, oh, there isn't that many, I can do this.\\\"\\n\\nWoodbury's park system spans more than 3,000 acres of open space and parkland, with parks located in every neighborhood and connected by miles of trails. Stevenson has 11 parks within walking distance of her home, giving her plenty of daily options. She keeps a detailed spreadsheet tracking all the parks she's visited, distances walked, and other details.\\n\\n\\\"What I have learned is that the parks here are absolutely stunning and great condition,\\\" Stevenson said. \\\"They're beautiful. The nature that we see, the lakes, the streams, and they're always being cared for.\\\"\\n\\nWith Discovery Park recently added to her list, Stevenson now has just two parks remaining to complete her ambitious goal.\",\"word_count\":248,\"primary_focus\":\"Meeting highlights and decisions\"},\"sidebar_elements\":{},\"metadata\":{\"sources_used\":[\"Meeting transcript\",\"City council records\"],\"uncertainty_notes\":[],\"next_meeting_date\":null,\"follow_up_needed\":null},\"notes\":\"Generated from meeting transcript and analysis\"}

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Full analysis
  • Woodbury's expansive 3,000-acre park system serves as a model for urban green space accessibility.
  • Citizen-led initiatives demonstrate the impact of well-maintained public infrastructure on quality of life.
  • The ongoing evolution of city infrastructure, with new parks added faster than they can be explored.

I think Woodbury is so blessed to have such a great park system because we have parks in every neighborhood.

Kathy Stevenson
Park AccessibilityReflecting on the accessibility of public parks.

What I enjoy about going on walks is the solitude, the quiet in the sounds of nature. No distractions. It's a nice break from everything.

Kathy Stevenson
Mental Well-beingDescribing the personal benefit of visiting parks.
Source document

[0:01] I think Woodbury is so blessed

to have such a great park system

[0:06] because we have parks

in every neighborhood.

[0:12] They're so accessible,

[0:14] you don't have to have a car or

you don't have to have a bike.

[0:17] There's going to be a park

somewhere nearby

[0:20] that you can go to and explore.

[0:23] Woodbury has more than 3000

acres of open space and parkland

[0:26] to explore, with miles of trails

connecting them.

[0:29] Each park is relatively easy

to discover.

[0:32] Living among this vast

amount of green spaces.

[0:34] is what inspired Kathy Stevenson

to see every park in Woodbury

[0:38] while experiencing her community

at the same time.

[0:41] I saw a person on TV

that was being interviewed

[0:45] that walked all the state parks,

and I thought,

[0:47] I wonder if I could walk

all the parks in Woodbury.

[0:50] And so I went to the website

and I clicked on the parks

[0:54] and I thought, oh, there isn't

that many, I can do this.

[0:58] So every day she gathers her dog

and walks out of her house

[1:02] and decides where to go.

[1:03] Every day I choose whether I'm

going to go right or left or

whatever,

[1:08] and there's 11 parks

within walking

[1:10] distance of my house,

so I've got a lot of choices.

[1:13] It's nice to see something

different.

[1:15] It's nice to see all of Woodbury

[1:17] or Constant Companion on her

journey has been melodee,

[1:20] who has also experienced

and sniffed

[1:22] every park by Kathy side.

[1:24] This gave me lots of

different places to go with her.

[1:27] Lots of places for her to sniff.

[1:29] She's always looking for

the squirrels.

[1:31] I think Wilmes Lake is probably

your biggest squirrel Lake.

[1:37] What I enjoy

[1:39] about going on walks

is the solitude, the quiet

[1:43] in the sounds of nature.

[1:45] As you're walking

in, you can think there's

[1:49] no distractions.

[1:50] It's a nice break

from everything.

[1:54] Kathy keeps

track of all her explorations.

[1:57] She has a spreadsheet

for all the parks

[1:59] she has visited, the distance

she's walked, and other details.

[2:02] It's a tool she uses to connect

with some of her favorite places

[2:07] I like Carver Lake Park

because it's so diverse.

[2:10] Carver Lake goes

into so many neighborhoods.

[2:14] There's so many branches

that go out to different places.

[2:18] Something different instead of

the same old park every day.

[2:24] She started this journey

in September 2023,

[2:27] and by November of that year

she had walked almost 50 parks.

[2:30] However, since then, Woodbury

has added more parks,

[2:33] and this summer

[2:35] she's out and about, determined

on making new discoveries.

[2:38] It's a beautiful park.

[2:39] I love the wildflowers

and the prairie

[2:42] and the trees are still little,

but they're going to grow

[2:45] and it's a nice path

to go around.

[2:48] It feels great

[2:50] to get another park off my list

and look forward to finishing

[2:53] my journeys.

[2:55] Now that she's added Discovery

[2:57] Park to her list, she can now

[2:58] focus on the two parks

she has left.

[3:01] Through it

all, Kathy has garnered

[3:02] a great appreciation

for all of Woodbury■s greenspace

[3:05] and the efforts

it takes to keep them beautiful.

[3:08] What I have learned

is that the parks

[3:10] here are absolutely stunning

and great condition.

[3:13] They're beautiful.

[3:15] The nature that we see the

the lakes, the streams,

[3:20] and they're always

being cared for.

[3:22] So they keep maintaining them

and doing more things to them.

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Other Topics from This Document

  • Woodbury Park System accessibility

  • Citizen engagement with public greenspace

  • Park maintenance and preservation

  • Individual project of walking all local parks

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