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Newspaper Clipping - Newspaper Clipping Scan - Death threat to city council over Parkview Golf Course Development - 6/21/2012www.S'rARTRIBUNE.COM /LOCAL SECTION B • THURSDAY, JUNE 21, 2012 rol 0 Anonymous letter sent amid rancor over Parkview Golf property By KATIE HUMPHREY katie.humphrey @startribune.com Neighbors and fans of Eagan's Parkview Golf Club have pleaded passionately for the city to save the last 18 -hole golf course in the city, but emotions went up another notch this week when City Council mem- bers received a death threat. It arrived by letter at City Hall on Tuesday, the day the council was to discuss a controversial proposal to close the golf course and build 175 houses there. The letter, written in block let- ters, read, "ANY COUNCIL MEM- BER VOTING FOR DEVELOPING PARVIEW [sic] WILL DIE!! YOU ARE AIL IN ON IT WITH THE DE- VELPER [sic] 11" It was signed "FOPV," which Mayor Mike Maguire speculat- ed stands for "Friends of Parkview" Eagan police say they are investi- gating the letter as a terroristic threat. In recent weeks, the city and mem- bers of a neighborhood group that opposes the housing plan also have received anonymous packets accus- ing the city of conflicts of interest and listing alleged legal disputes involy- ing Kurt Manley of the development company Hunter Emerson, Those packets had been signed "Friends of Parkview" with a return address -at the Wescott Library in Eagan. Threat continues on B4 I RENEE JONES SCHNEIDER Star Tribune agan Mayor Mike Maguire held up a otter that threatened elected officials. "We're encouraging support Hof the amendment. We're not going to critique [pastors]." Faith groups statewide re- main divided over the amend- ment. Catholic'bishops, repre- senting the largest denomina- tion in Minnesota with close to 1.1 million followers, have come out in favor of it. Mem- bers of the state's second -larg- est denomination,theEvangel ical Lutheran Church in Amer- ica, with close to 800,000 ad- herents, have overwhelmingly voted against the amendment. Evangelical leaders and con= gregations have played major roles in helping get marriage amendment measures passed in other states — from helping raise money for pro- amend - ment groups to canvassing door -to- doorto preaching the biblical -based belief that mar- riage should be a union be- tween a man and woman. But with the lack of formal support from leaders such as Anderson and Piper a writer of several books who has an international following through his Desiring God min- istry — Minnesota evangelicals may take a less active approach in supporting the amendment, said `Wendy Cadge, associ ate professor of sociology Brandeis University, who's written about religion's role in the same -sex marriage debate. "Evangelicals are not mono- lithic across the country," she said. "It could 'be evangeli- cals in Minnesota are slightly different than evangelicals in parts of the Deep South." . Tony Jones, a Christian theologian who's written about Piper's ministry, said An- derson and Piper's more neu- tral approach may lead evan- gelical pastors to give similar sermons against homosexual- ity but not explicitly advocate that their flocks vote for the amendment. iOr congregations might refrain from addressing the amendment altogether. "I think Piper is probably speaking for a lot of evangeli- cal pastors when he says let's stay ou t of politics for a while;' Jones said. Rose French • 612- 673 -4352 over golf course property �- THREAT FROM B1 tempt at persuasion that I've seen in m y entire time on the Residents who packed the City Council .chambers for Tuesday's meeting gasped when the mayor read the let- ter aloud. w h ) lace in our council," Maguire said. "I've never seen somebody actually put to paper whatamounts to a terroristic threat:' Emotions have run high in ere s no p Eagan since this past spring, community for this kind of dis- cussion,' Maguire said, waving a copy of the letter. "I'm not,go- ing to tolerate us lowering the level of discourse on this issue to this kind of garbage:' The council voted unani- m ously to 'proceed with the process of changing Parkview's land use from open space to residential. It will require ap proval by the Metropolitan council and another vote to become final. Council Member Gary' Hansen said the city has tried to make the Parkview discus- sion a 'very deliberate process that, I think, was fair to both sides of the issue:' Neither he nor the mayor blames neighbors who have or- ganized opposition as being re- sponsible for sendingthe anon - ymous.packets or the threaten- ing letter. "You'd like to think an Eagan resident would not do such a thing," Hansen said. Both said it would be wrong to disregard the threat, but ex- pressed more disappointment than fear for having received it. "This is clearly the most extreme, overly emotional at- when Hunter Emerson bought Parkview with plans to build 175 houses on 80 -acre prop- erty. The course's , owners have said that keeping it open isn't fi nancially feasible. They say it's been losing money every year as golf participation declines. Many neighbors have pro- tested that the homes would ruin the bucolic open space they enjoy, draw more traffic to nearby streets and endanger the environment. They have been joined in their protests by fans of Parkview, which is known for its accessibility, long open season"andpromoton of youth golf. In addressing, the council during Tuesday's meeting, Pat- rick a spokesmanfor a group of neighbors, said they disregarded the anonymous packet they received. "We didnothingwiththose," Campbell said. 'We didn't think they were appropriate:' Discussion at the meet- ing was orderly and calm but lengthy, lasting until 12:30 a.m. Wednesday. Katie Humphrey •952- 746 -3286 Citizens studied and commented on plans fora'17 5-unit housing development at a meeting of the Eagan CityCouncil on Tuesday. Death threat i's received