Law enforcement officers to be honored with memorial in downtown Rochester

After many years of planning, construction of Rochester’s Law Enforcement Memorial is scheduled to begin next spring.

The Rochester Park Board approved plans Monday for the memorial to be built on a green site just west of the existing veterans memorial.

The memorial will be dedicated to the men and women in southeast Minnesota who have lost their lives while serving in law enforcement.

The Park Board had previously signed off on the Seventh Street site, but Monday’s decision allows the Law Enforcement Memorial Foundation of Southeast Minnesota to move ahead with construction of the memorial.

The project, to be built and maintained using private funds, will be broken up into two phases. Along with the shrines, gardens, and walkways, the latter phase will also include an exercise training site.

Click here learn more about the project, or to make a donation.

‘Save the Track’ group can take a victory lap

Also on Monday, the Park Board approved a $270,000 bid from Rochester Sand and Gravel to repave the Soldiers Field track with a soft surface. The decision was a victory for grassroots activists, who had challenged the board’s initial plan to resurface the track with asphalt. As part of the deal, the Rochester Track Club will pitch in about $3,000 a year for maintenance of the track. More background on this story can be found here.

Sean Baker is a Rochester journalist and the founder of Med City Beat.