Comments, FAQs and Testimonials

... It's too chaotic and crowded.  I"m afraid of getting hurt."       

Understandable.  Many people feel this way.

Short Answer:   The Public.  The citizens who pay taxes that support the operations.  This means all citiens of Minnesota since TRPD receives some funding from the state.  Most of their funding is from taxes levied on citizens of Hennepin County.    Their annual budget is about $48,000,000 and TRPD has taxing authority.

Additional complaints may be made to the  MN Governor's Office,  Department of Humans Rights, Office of Minnesota State Auditor,  MN Attorney General, and Hennepin County Board of Commissioners (two TRPD commissioners are appointed by Hennepin County).

These are our estimates with the best information we have.  And we MN taxpayers foot the bill for this.  If these subsidies go on for another 25 years, the amount will be an estimated $13.7 to $21.5 MILLION.  TRPD has not disputed these figures or offered corrections.

Too many people feel this way and too many good people have opted out of teaching and patrolling at Hyland for safety reasons. 

This was stated in a coaches' meeting by the race department supervisor when asked if Hyland would be rotating lanes more equitably.  And this is one of  the problems - "it's always been this way" and Hyland doesn't seem interested in listening to the coaches or the public.   The longer it goes on, the more harm that is done.   A couple of teams have left Hyland because of this unfair treatment.

Excellent question... especially in times like these of heightened awareness of DEI... and especially in a publicly funded park system.

Good point.  It begs more questions:  Why won't they answer the questions asked by Friends of Hyland?  Why won't they make the simple fixes? This lack of transparency is very frustrating.

It is notable that two of the sitting commissioners, Chair John Gibbs and Vice Chair Jennifer DeJournett, have children who were in Team Gilboa.  Same for former Chair John Gunyou and former Hyland General Manager Fred Seymour.

... the subsidies vs. continuing the stonewalling and coverup, year after year?"   Good question.    We wonder about the same things.  It's not that difficult.

Yes it is, and it's gotten worse over the last 8 years when Hyland allowed and fueled Team Gilboa's  expansion. It's almost as if the North area of Hyland is exclusively for Team Gilboa but the rest of the teams are allowed so that they can subsidize operations for this special interest group.  It's disheartening to think our public park system would support this arrangement.

Yes it has.  It's gotten worse though in the last eight years due to the lack of control on crowds and oversubscription of a certain program - Team Gilboa which is at 550 members (2022 figures) when their operating agreement states 275.

Three Rivers Park District operates Hyland Hills.  TRPD is a government agency, and the hills and start ramps are owned by the public.    However, it might seem otherwise with what goes on.

According to the Operating Agreement that Team Gilboa has with TRPD, their warming shack was to be "conveyed" to TRPD at some point.   The ownership question of this shack is one of the unanswered questions in the complaint.  With the signage that states that Team Gilboa is Hyland's "home team", it might appear that Hyland owns Team Gilboa but this is not true.  Currently the shack (with their own drop-off/pick-up entrance built for them at the expense of the public) is for exclusive use by Team Gilboa Members and the lease payment to the public is $1 per the entire lease agreement which runs 2000 to 2030, with the last lease renewal in 2014.   Note: this lease can be cancelled with one year's notice.

Also, the contract stipulates 275 members (which is be being exceeded by double and this is part of the saftey issues at Hyland because of overcrowding not just at the race hill but the entire area). 

The contract also stipulates that TRPD/Hyland pays the security and insurance for the building  - costs that are borne by the public.

... results in discrimination against other groups?   Good question.  Former Chair John Gunyou gave this as a reason in 2016 for why Hyland operates as they do (in the context of being questioned on fair facility sharing at Hyalnd).

Some coaches do but most don't speak up anymore.  The reasons include:

• Fear of retaliation  - fewer lane time allocation on inferior lanes.
• It seems futile - not much ever changes - it's still unfair even after all the people speaking up in the past.
• Some coaches like the current system because of the competitive advantage it gives their team if their kids can afford the supplemental training and purchase of extra lane time.
• Some coaches' jobs are easier if their racers are trained up in other programs - they can have fewer practices and fewer runs per practices because their kids are getting their practices outside of their high school training.
• They don't want confrontation and they don't want to upset the parents of kids on their team who train with Team Gilboa.
• Their own children race or raced on Team Gilboa - loyalty.
• "It's just Hyland.  It's always been this way.  You'll never get this fixed."

... of the BOC, the highest oversight and leadership of TRPD and Hyland Hills, have or had children who were on Team Gilboa?"    

Yes, this is true.   Chair John Gibbs, Vice Chair Jennifer DeJournett and former chair John Gunyou have all had children on Team Gilboa.  So did former Hyland General Manager Fred Seymour.

... not to subsidize the elite few and special interest groups.  Additionally, private interest groups should not monopolize,charge for, or profit from, taxpayer owned assets, regardless of 501(c)3 status."

... and what makes them more special than the other 18 teams that call Hyland their "Home Hill?"    Can other teams get Home Hill Designation?

Good questions.  Would be nice if TRPD would answer these questions.

Here is a definition of Agency Capture:  https://webhome.auburn.edu/~johnspm/gloss/captured_agency.phtml

Captured Agency

A government agency, especially a regulatory agency, that is largely under the influence of the economic interest group(s) most directly and massively affected by its decisions and policies -- typically business firms (and sometimes professional associations, labor unions, or other special interest groups) from the industry or economic sector being regulated. 

A captured agency shapes its regulations and policies primarily to benefit these favored client groups at the expense of less organized and often less influential groups (such as consumers) rather than designs them in accordance with some broader or more inclusive conception of the public interest.

From Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_capture#:~:text=There%20are%20two%20basic%20types,to%20maintain%20its%20government%20funding

In politics, regulatory capture (also called agency capture) is a form of corruption of authority that occurs when a political entity, policymaker, or regulator is co-opted to serve the commercial, ideological, or political interests of a minor constituency, such as a particular geographic area, industry, profession, or ideological group.[1][2]

When regulatory capture occurs, a special interest is prioritized over the general interests of the public, leading to a net loss for society. The theory of client politics is related to that of rent-seeking and political failure; client politics "occurs when most or all of the benefits of a program go to some single, reasonably small interest (e.g., industry, profession, or locality) but most or all of the costs will be borne by a large number of people (for example, all taxpayers)".[3]

We have been asking why are they giving out the favors to one group year after year, for 20-25 years.

Another question that is just as important is "what do the commissioners have against the majority of the children?"  

Clearly, the commissioners easily make the decision to be "for fairness or against fairness." And clearly, they are supporting inequity, as evidenced by their lack of action, transparency, and justification.