Members of a working group focused on developing a new Minnesota state park within the Capitol Area met for the first time Wednesday.
That state park would be named for the late Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, who were killed in June of 2025 by Vance Boelter.
State Senator John Hoffman, who was also seriously wounded by Boelter in the politically motivated attacks, is part of the working group.
That group was included in the legislature's 2026 omnibus state government policy and finance law.
"But her intention was to create this park so that we could be self-sustaining, that it would be a beautification of what Minnesota is about," Hoffman explains.
The group now plans to meet every three weeks with a report of its recommendations due to the legislature by next February.
"In the aftermath of her and Mark's assassination, several of us thought it would be a great way to preserve that legacy, to call together a group and have discussions about whether that idea was workable and how it could work," House DFL Caucus Leader Zach Stephenson says. "And how we could best bring it to life."
The new state park would be placed within the State Capitol Area. Stephenson says Hortman's idea was to create the state park as a way to make the area even more accessible to people.
Boelter was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in federal prison in July, a little over a year after the political attacks. He still faces similar state charges, and made his first court appearance Aug. 3.
Boelter faces two counts of murder for killing the Hortmans, four counts of attempted murder, impersonating a police officer and animal cruelty. The Hortman family’s golden retriever was gravely injured in the shootings and had to be euthanized.
Hoffman and his family also filed a personal injury lawsuit against Boelter in April.
The park would be developed in the state capitol area
The park would be developed in the state capitol area
