Graeser Park - Historic Wayside Rest

"A great deal of work has been put into restoring the beehive grills, stone walks, stone tables, stone benches and stone walls. The concrete cementing of the walls on the north side is lavender-lilac color. Concrete sidewalks have been added. I look forward to waterworks being made functional again. It would be delightful to have lilacs replaced at this historic rest area of the “Lilac Way” now known as Highway 100."

"Wonderful use of sandstone to build the amenities. There is a large stretch of parking, which is right off the street giving the impression of an extra wide street. It does need a bit of maintenance and it is far too close to the highway to be regarded as peaceful. There is no playground nor restrooms. As a fan of stone, I do appreciate how the park was constructed. The large sandstone grill is obviously a standout feature, but it is closed off and unusable. There is a lower area which i suspect might have been fountains or pools, but now it is ruins."

"This was a former Wayside Rest on the Beltline Highway at thr fringe surrounding the Twin Cities prior to the Interstate Highway System (1939). The park has one of only two Limestone Beehive Grills still in existence (the only one in its original location). Restoration of the park began more the 3 years ago, then the state took control and it languished. Some work has begun again, but it is still quite sad and poorly maintained. Hopefully the park will be beautiful again. Impressive Limestone Construction built during the Depression (WPA). Still memerable to see."

"A nice small neighborhood "park" with some history. The stone benches and most of the beehive grills installed as part of "The New Deal" have been removed (for safekeeping, I'm told, as the park is being renovated.) The parking lot itself has no painted lines, so parking is... however you want it to be, I guess. Tucked away at the back of the park is a lovely limestone fountain with water features (currently not working, but lots of cleanup and restoration in this area in 2021)."

"Absolutely beautiful! My husband and I stopped here after we went to robbinsdale to pick something up and saw the beehive fire pit and decided to walk around. We found this great little spot! It reminds me of an enchanted garden on castle grounds! This place gave me some great ideas for the garden and pond I want to build! Actually planning on bringing the kids there today! Hopefully it's not all been torn out! The stone benches are old but give it an old renaissance type of feel! Probably not sturdy so don't let your kids play on them! If they got the water back in the pond and planted flowers this place would be my perfect wedding spot!"