On the warm summer evening of July 10, 2025, about 90 local residents crowded into a church hall to plan once again how to defeat the Summit Avenue Regional Trail. The meeting was organized by Save Our Street (SOS), which has been fighting a proposed bike trail along St. Paul’s most celebrated street for several years.
At this late date, SOS has chocked up an unbroken list of defeats. Multiple levels of government have already approved the Summit trail plan:
- Approved by the St. Paul Planning Commission and Parks & Recreation Commission in April and May of 2023 after a year and a half of community input.
- Approved by the St. Paul Paul City Council and Mayor Melvin Carter in May 2023.
- Approved by the Metropolitan Council in October 2023.
- All city council members who supported the plan were reelected in November 2023.
- In the same election, voters approved a 1% sales tax to fund the Summit trail and other road and park improvements throughout the city.
After so much democratic process, why isn’t the trail already under construction? And why does SOS think they can still stop it?
The answer is that the city still needs to approve construction plans and allocate funds, which it plans to do one segment at a time. And SOS plans to sue the city to stop them.
“Do we have a chance?” asked lawyer Bob Cattanach of SOS at the July 10th meeting. “I believe we do…. We’re going to probably have to file a lawsuit.”
Delay Tactics
Cattanach detailed plans to weaponize Minnesota’s environmental protection laws to force the city to conduct an Environmental Assessment Worksheet for the trail, ostensibly to protect the avenue’s “historic tree canopy.” Boulevard trees will be affected during street reconstruction whether or not a bike trail is included.
An environmental review is a costly process designed for things like factories and feed lots, not street reconstructions or bike trails. In fact, the city recently completed several similar trails along Como Avenue, Ayd Mill Road, Johnson Parkway and Wheelock Parkway without having to defend itself in court.
Cattanach also hinted that SOS may also file suit based on historic preservation laws and the Americans with Disabilities Act. He did not explain how the trail might be historical, given that bikes predate cars on Summit by several decades. Nor did he specify how the trail might violate the ADA. He acknowledged that the purpose of the suits would be to create “speed bumps” to slow the process. These speed bumps could delay trail construction for years.
Throughout the country, NIMBYs have been using environmental laws to fight climate-friendly initiatives like bike trails and urban density. Earlier this year, for example, the City of Minneapolis finally prevailed against Smart Growth Minneapolis and Minnesota Citizens for the Protection of Migratory Birds, which sought to stop implementation of the city’s landmark 2040 Comprehensive Plan by forcing the city to conduct an extensive environmental review. The same tactics have been used to delay bike infrastructure in cities from New York to San Francisco.
Cattanach has already sued the city once and won $30,000 for alleged violations of the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act. In that suit, he sought access to numerous city documents, including nonexistent emails between city staff, myself and former Saint Paul Bicycle Coalition co-chair Andy Singer. The case is currently under appeal.
But the true cost to the city wasn’t just the $30,000 settlement — it was also the untold fortune spent by city staff and attorneys to defend itself. And now the city will be facing another suit — possibly more — from the same litigant. Money that could be spent on recreation centers, libraries or pothole repair will be diverted to legal expenses because of an aggrieved minority.
Well-Off Residents
Perhaps SOS is hoping to delay trail construction long enough to elect a new mayor or city council who will side with them. Indeed, one participant in the meeting stood up and exclaimed, “Let’s replace Melvin Carter!” The crowd responded with cheers. Meanwhile, Carolyn Will, who has been the public relations force behind SOS’s resistance to the bike trail, is running for the open Ward 4 City Council seat in St. Paul.
The crowd grew more vocal as the meeting progressed. SOS has complained for years that the city has failed to listen to their concerns. So, when Public Works Director Sean Kershaw offered to answer questions and clarify misinformation, you might think he’d be warmly welcomed. Instead, he was greeted with hisses and jeers.
One man in the front row yelled repeatedly, “What are you doing here?!” Another participant yelled, “We don’t want you!”
Once Kershaw was finally able to speak, he was soon interrupted by Cattanach, who snatched the microphone away. Kershaw was eventually allowed to explain why Summit Avenue was chosen for a bike trail and answer questions. He was continually interrupted by jeers and acrimony.
How this all plays out now is impossible to predict. In its five-year capital improvement plan, the city has slated construction on Summit from the river to Fairview Avenue in 2028 and from Fairview to Hamline Avenue in 2029. Segments east of Hamline aren’t even scheduled yet.
If SOS files suit, these plans may be delayed several years, even if SOS eventually loses. The planning process that began in 2021 may not be fully realized until the late 2030s. In that time:
- How many cyclists will be injured by drivers on Summit’s unsafe painted lanes?
- How many people will decide to drive instead of bike because no safe route exists across St. Paul?
- And how can we believe in local democracy if a small group of wealthy residents can so easily overturn the will of the people?
Perhaps the larger community can shame Cattanach and SOS enough to abandon their lawsuit plans. Perhaps Summit Avenue residents will realize that they’re diverting the scarce resources of a cash-strapped city merely to serve their own motor-normative preferences. Perhaps one of Summit’s ancient sewers will fail and a sinkhole will open atop Ramsey Hill.
Given how 2025 has progressed so far, anything is possible.
All photos by Dan Marshall