1959
In November, voters approved a bond issue for development of a park at the south end of Crystal Lake which was mostly marsh. It took two years of hauling in fill before development could begin. When the park was somewhat completed a naming contest was held with a bicycle as the prize. It was awarded to Gregory Hollenkamp, age 9, who suggested the name “Lakeview Terrace Park.” The combined activities building and warming house was built in 1962.
Steve Rieschl was selected as a member of the 1960 U.S. Olympic ski jumping team. He later captained the U.S. Nordic Ski Team at the 1962 World Champion. Steve was only 4 when his parents strapped on his first pair of skis and sent him over a little snow bump near the chalet at Wirth Park. A couple years later he was racing down the olden wooden ski jump.
In September, Robbinsdale Police were confronted with the phenomenon of almost daily car thefts. Police Chief Matt Spurzem told the Minneapolis Tribune that the department was working on at least 6 stolen car cases from the previous week. The community had previously averaged about one a month. In November seven area youths ages 14-19 were in custody for the theft of hundreds of cars and over $3000 dollars in merchandise. One told police that stealing cars “was like smoking cigarettes”. Once ha had taken a few he said he got his kicks from eluding police. All the kids said they stole for excitement and that they were glad they were caught before they did anything more serious. They were never part of an organized gang just loosely connected “cliques” from Robbinsdale, Brooklyn Center, the Bryn Mawr area in Minneapolis.
This post is part of a series loosely based on the book Robbinsdale Then and Now by Helen Blodgett. The two photos at the top of the post are from the 1959 Homecoming Parade on West Broadway.