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"Save summit!!!!!! I’m willing to speak in court"

"Existing bike lane is adequate… leave parking/driving lanes as is. Do better painting of lanes for definition. Absolutely leave the green space ALONE."

"This plan to destroy Summit Avenue with “regional bike trails” is a brazen clandestine effort perpetrated by individuals with no historical perspective of this magnificent Avenue who probably don’t even live on Summit Avenue. To those who would desecrate this historic street, please use your resources to repave the avenue, now riddled with cracks, bumps, and potholes. You should all be ashamed of yourselves. Your plan is a rape of a wonderful street."

"NO! Summit Avenue is known across the country as one of the finest streets still remaining untouched in an urban area. Do not destroy its historical and architectural significance."

"Please keep summit as is. Consider replacing the pavement more frequently. And put guard rails between bikes and traffic. But keep it as is with mature trees and the same footprint it currently has."

"My friends and family have grown up walking, biking and enjoying Summit Ave as it is for generations. The design does not need to change. Whoever came up with this insane idea needs a reality check. Repair and repave, yes. Modify? Absolutely not. This idea is not “city planning” — this idea is city destroying. Preserve the integrity of our holy Summit Avenue and LEAVE IT ALONE."

"We have family in St. Paul that we visit regularly; we have long-time friends who live on Summit Ave and whom we visit; we come to St. Paul for events at House of Hope Presbyterian, Macalester, St. Thomas, and St. Paul Seminary. Summit Ave is a tree-lined beautiful historic treasure with fine homes, churches, and educational institutions. It is a gorgeous boulevard for motorists, bicyclists, and homeowners. Please do not mess with it!"

"The trees and properties are so beautiful. Very careful consideration should be made for any roads or construction!!!"

"Please dont remove trees and parking. There is already a perfectly good bike lane. I ride my bike everywhere and feel completely safe on summit as is."

"It is right and good to preserve the majesty of Summit Avenue. Fix the potholes and leave the trees untouched."

"I am currently visiting Saint Paul from Chicago, for the very first time. While walking down Summit Ave, I was blown away by the beautiful homes and even more beautiful parkway. As an avid biker and family enthusiast, I can imagine myself raising my children here. I’ve been thinking about slowing down from city life, but am afraid to lose my urban lifestyle. After visiting Summit Ave, I decided to move to Saint Paul. However, with recent news regarding potential changes to the landscaping and overall integrity of the street, I am rethinking my decision to move to Saint Paul. I hope the city does not follow through with these plans to change the atmosphere of the street and city it resides in. Thank you for your time, Maeve."

"I want to keep the historic nature of Summit Avenue in tact as is. There are already bike lanes in place that are more than sufficient. The condition of the roads with all of the pot holes on river road and Summit Avenue should be addressed ASAP, not spending money on projects that are unnecessary and disruptive to the community. It is also a waste of tax dollars and that is the last thing we need to be dealing with in this economic environment."

"The bike lane have already ruined summit. Bikers are rude and choose which laws to obey. And as such should be allowed in the first place. Summit should be left to cars and walkers, and even small shops where viable. Summit avenue is historical and any more changes, unless charging it back to the original brick roads, is absolutely disgusting."

"How do you have Summit Hill without the wonderful Summit Ave? I want my neighborhood to stay the beautiful with lush trees, the existing bike lanes, and most of all the historic scenery of St. Paul. We have enough bike trails throughout the city. We aren't the West Coast, this is the Midwest! We have snow almost 6 months if not more during the year. I want my neighborhood to stay the treasure it is. NO Summit Ave Regional Trail for me."

"I don’t live on Summit but live in St Anthony Park. We just had a horrible blow to Cleveland 200 trees down when the city had been saying 60. Trust is low."

"The proposal for changes is so comprehensively destructive and esthetically atrocious that it defies belief. Everyone with a modicum of care for St Paul's living history should oppose it until it is withdrawn and abandoned."

"There is no other street in the country with the architectural development like Summit. Don’t ruin it. Leave it as it is with a bike lane in the street. And yes, I am a recreational and commuter cyclist."

"Summit Avenue is a beautiful historic area. Please let's keep it that way by not changing the historical character of the street. It definitely needs to be repaved and new curbing installed. But, it already has plenty of space for pedestrians to walk and for bikers to bike (I use the perfectly functional bike lanes regularly and the sidewalks for walking). The historical character of our city should be a prized feature, not something that needs to be changed every time we get a new elected official. Please embrace the historical nature of our beautiful city and not make unsensitive changes just because other cities (MPLS) are doing so. The money to be spent on this project would be more usefully used for other needed purposes, like our education system."

"This proposed trail plan is a bad idea. If the trail is constructed it will forever change the nationally significant historic appeal of Summit Avenue. Along with that, many, many mature trees along the length of Summit Avenue will be cut down. The designers of the proposed trail say they are concerned about preserving trees and the existing landscape but they will not say definitively that trees will not be removed. They are dissembling at best, outright lying at worst. This trail will uproot (literally and figuratively) Summit Avenue to benefit a very few already privileged people. We need to unite to stop this proposed destruction of Summit Avenue!"

"Very disappointing that when I typed "save summit ave.org" the powers-that-be directed my search to a pro- make a mess of summit web site. If the city did that, very unethical on their part. Whoever did that should be ashamed. And if this is really not already decided, why has much of the construction on curbs etc. on Summit already been done?"

"Please reconsider this terrible esthetic for Summit Ave. Do not remove one tree for this plan. There is no need for such a wide bike lane, and it should wind around the trees rather than cut a straight line along the blvd. Very simple changes that won’t ruin Summit Aves beauty."

"Leave the road as it is and simply repave the street. I bike (and drive and walk and run) on Summit all the time and the current design is perfect. It does not need to change."

"My family and I bike along Summit Ave. because of how bike-friendly it is. Any "updates" are not only unnecessary but also incredibly expensive. The only improvements that are needed in our opinion is that of general re-surfacing of the road."

"Summit Ave, like most of St. Paul, should be protected. The new plan is inexcusable and unnecessary. For a city buried in snow for at least 4 months we are for sure mismanaging priorities. City proposals are just serving special interest groups."

"Please keep Summit Avenue as is… The more we update historic places, the more we lose our sense of past, and history!"

"I have lived within 1-2 blocks of Summit for nearly 40 years - and hav owned my home on Lincoln Avenue for thirty years. Summit was my favorite street and I walked it nearly every day. The City has really let Summit go - street, tree care, etc. Now, just because money is available for creating bike paths, you want to completely change the Avenue. Have you ever taken a count of how many people bike, and during which months? Have you considered making Summit more pedestrian-friendly? I’d bet more people walk than bike. All the other bicycle friendly projects I’ve seen over the past few years have NOT resulted in a significant amount increase in bicycling. If you build it and they do NOT come, perhaps there are better projects in St Paul? Maybe even something for walkers???!!!"

"Keep the greatest street in the state as is."

"The opposite of “build it and they will come”is “wreck it and they will leave”. I’ve lived alongside and walked Summit Avenue for 70 years and it should be protected and preserved as a premier city treasure. The idea of altering Summit Avenue for proposed bicycle riders is miss guided thinking. This is the middle of summer and I see very riders - a handful at most. Start by paving the streets - and just pave the street. There already is a bike lane."

"For 50+ years I have lived in the vicinity of various sections of Summit Ave, and walk, bike or drive it every day. It certainly needs improvements, but after seeing the city's presentation I am baffled as to why they want to put a Regional Trail down a dense urban street. Putting the funds into repaving, more intentional landscaping, public art and other traffic calming measures would greatly improve the safety beauty of the avenue."

"While I understand wanting to make improvements for bikers, these proposed plans will be a detriment to the beauty of Summit. My partner and I used to live in the neighborhood and loved nothing more than walking down beautiful Summit Ave with our dogs every day. We dream of moving back one day and walking under the large shade trees. We would be very saddened to see these proposed changes pass. There were recently trees cut down on a section of Grand Ave and that greatly decreased the charm of the area. I would hate to see something similar happen to Summit."

"I cannot understand why this is being proposed… there are excellent bike lanes on Summit and beautiful trees. Sidewalks are well maintained…. I cannot understand whom a change like this would benefit!"

"I am a bicyclist myself and am all for helping our country catch up to European bike trail systems and starting a movement in America toward less dependency on automobiles. But, to take a boulevard as rare, beautiful, unique and NATIONALLY significant as Summit, and disturb its “historical essence” is perplexing to me. It’s not about any of us saying “Not In My Front Yard”— it’s about preserving and not compromising St Paul’s already established 100+ year old tree-lined gem. “Fixing what isn’t broken” just does not seem right."

"I can think of few things that represent the city “moving forward with the times” than the destruction and removal of old trees. such a joke!"

"I am a UST grad (2011) and lived in St Paul, blocks from summit Ave, for 8yrs. Running the middle trail, enjoying the ample shade, and having easy access to Grand Ave errands make up many memories for me. I now live in KC and visit 2-4x a year. A drive or walk down summit is a must for any visitor I bring to town. The thought of destructing (way more than disrupting) such a historic and beautifully preserved street/neighborhood is appalling. It is a core part to the inviting nature of St. Paul."

"One of the most beautiful and pedestrian/bike friendly areas in the metro. Why take away something that works"

"Once again, we have people who do not live on Summit Avenue make decisions for Summit Avenue without the consent of the residents proving the Saint Paul city government is not constrained by democratic representation because Saint Paul does not allow its residents to have any say in its decisions."

"I am a daily bicycle commuter. I see no need for a dedicated two-way bike trail. As others have pointed out, this is not best practice and brings many safety issues. The current dedicated bike lane does not need to be changed. The removal of trees would be an incredible waste and change the character of the street."

"The Summit Avenue regional trail doesn’t need to happen. Summit Avenue is already a treasure. Walking through the lilacs in the spring evokes a living cathedral."

"The bike lane on Cleveland has created a speedway on the avenue. One of my neighbors was hit and killed near I94 last February. One vehicle going south can back up traffic all the way to I94 during rush hour. Bicycle lanes messed up Otto and Pelham. Don't DESTROY Summit Ave. It is a treasure for all!"

"People live and visit Saint Paul because of history and beauty. Adding this bike path will only cause Summit to change for the worse. Somethings don’t need change, this historic street is one of those things"

"My wife(Judy) and I have lived in St.Paul our entire 79 years. We have bike and walked and driven a car on this street for well over 50 years and still do on a regular basis. Whenever we have visitors from out of state we show off St. Paul and they are always impressed by Summit Ave. However over the last few years all we can say is that Summit between Victoria and the river road is one of the worst maintained streets in the twin cities. Please keep the layout the same as is but resurface the roadway. Save the money for maintenance of bike trails such as the Sam Morgan trail between Otto and Randolph."

"I walk summit ave all the time. This place is a centerpiece. I see other walkers and several college joggers. I eat and shop on Grand and I will stop going to that area if the ambience of Summit Avenue changes."

"I have lived in St. Paul my entire life growing up on Grand Ave. I currently walk home from work most days and take Summit for a large portion of it. I regularly bike on summit as well. Please do not destroy the the boulevard for a bike path. The bike lanes work just fine as they are. They are some of the best in the city. Its the trees and open green space that that would be removed that make Summit such a nice place to travel."

"Please do not change the configuration of Summit Avenue! I moved here 4 months ago from out of town and live one block over from Summit. Aside from the horrible impact on our local environment, Summit Avenue has been a highlight of my time here and to see it change will be truly a heartbreaking decision."

"I am opposed to the City of St. Paul changes proposal. Spend that money on fixing existing potholes!"

"Summit Ave is Historic. Do NOT change it"

"Keep the bike lanes on Summit and the middle meridian between Lexington to the river but please have garbage cans along Summit from Selby to the river . Thank you"

"I can’t imagine who thought up this terrible plan at a time when neighborhoods are being decimated and de-urban forested by ash borer. Take a look at Grand Ave by Cafe Latte for a sneak peek at what a beautiful, tree-lined historic street like Summit Ave could look like. I think too often people are passive about these ill conceived urban planning ideas but Summit Ave is too important to rubber stamp this nonsense. Also, I’d like to note that I’m an avid biker who is perfectly happy with the current bike lanes on Summit. They feel very safe and I can look up at the beautiful Victorian houses and beautiful, CO2 producing trees as I ride. Thank you."

"Summit Avenue is a treasure of Saint Paul. While I live over closer to West Saint Paul, I love coming up to summit for relaxing walks, getting to admire the large trees and sometimes enjoying the bike lanes. To change the street without allowing these key features to remain as they are would serve to damage the integrity of the location and to lessen an iconic and beautiful area of Saint Paul. Please leave the street alone, barring minor or necessary repairs."

"Seeing the barren strip that is now Cleveland Avenue in St. Anthony Park should be an ominous warning to us all. The city ignored residents' pleas to protect their trees after city plans came out at the final hour and said they needed to remove three times as many trees as initially proposed. I wouldn't expect the city to do anything differently with Summit Avenue... I am tired of hearing our city propose projects in the name of accessibility and equity without genuinely serving those interests. Summit Avenue does need to be improved, but it does NOT need to be changed. The neighborhoods adjacent to Summit Avenue are already well established. Please consider allocating this regional trail through a part of our city that could be better served."