Dickerman Park is an urban park in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. The park is located along University Avenue. The park is 2.5acre in size and stretches along the north side of University from Fairview to Aldine street. The land was donated to the city in 1909 but was never developed as a public green space. Since the park's founding sections have been paved over for parking lots and other sections are used as front yards for businesses. Proposals for redevelopment gained traction in the 2000s with support from the original family that donated the land. The park is often mistaken as a broad setback from buildings on University Avenue.HistoryThere are two variations on how the park was created. According to Donald L. Empson in his book The Street Where You Live an area from University north to Thomas Avenue and Fairview Avenue east to Aldine Street was platted in 1906 as Dickerman Park. The subdivision, owned by the Dickerman family, was reconfigured six years later by Dickerman Investment Company and Griggs, Cooper & Co. to move the lots from abutting University Avenue back 160ft establishing a greenspace along the two blocks. In 1929 an atlas noted that the land was "dedicated for a parkway".According to most other sources the land was donated by Dickerman Investment Co. in 1909 for "park and parkway" purposes. The donation was intended to spur development around the Dickerman Park Addition, a platted development owned by the company. The company's president was G.G. Dickerman, and secretary was C.K. Dickerman. At the time city planners envisioned University Avenue to become a sweeping boulevard similar to Champs-Élysées.In 1957 the westernmost portion was paved over for use by the Griggs-Midway Building with consent by the City of Saint Paul. In 1977 the Midway YMCA built a ten car parking lot again with permission from the city. Since then the Midway YMCA and several charter schools on the east side of the park have constructed playgrounds on the park apparently without official approval from the city.
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