WAYZATA — One of Wayzata’s sweetest spring traditions returned this year as residents gathered to tap maple trees, collect sap, and boil it down the old-fashioned way into syrup.

This year’s gatherings included March 25 and April 7 events connected to Merrily Borg Babcock’s driveway at the end of Reno Street, where participants carried forward the hands-on work of turning sap into finished syrup after tapping trees in Wayzata’s Big Woods.

The tradition is part of Wayzata’s broader maple tapping program, which has for years invited residents and families to learn how to tap trees, gather sap, and take part in the community boil. Parks & Trails Board and City published materials describe maple tapping as a seasonal program tied to the Big Woods Preserve, the 14-acre remnant of hardwood forest east of Colonial Square that includes sugar maples.

Babcock, a longtime Wayzata civic leader and volunteer, has also been publicly linked to the program’s beginnings. A recent Wayzata.com profile noted that she helped establish the Maple Tree Tapping Program with John Curtis, adding the event to a long list of community efforts she has helped shape over the years.

Babcock, a longtime Wayzata civic leader and volunteer, helped establish the Maple Tree Tapping Program with John Curtis, with Jack and Cheryl Amdal also among its supporters from day one. The syrup program is one of many community efforts she has helped shape over the years.

On her Facebook page this spring, Babcock offered a simple update that captured both the continuity and the labor of the season: “Still wearing the same boots and cooking sap to syrup. Will finish the 2026 season Tuesday evening.”

The work itself is no small undertaking. When Cheryl Lawson asked on Facebook, “How many cords of wood do you use each season for syruping?” Babcock replied: the “City has delivered 3 loads and we have used about 3 taking into consideration the use of last years old, sometimes ‘punky’ wood.”

The tradition also feels especially fitting in Wayzata, where sugar maples and the remnants of the Big Woods are part of the town’s oldest landscape. Historical accounts show that maple sugaring was happening in this area as early as the 1850s, giving today’s gatherings a connection to spring rituals that long predate the modern city. 

That deeper connection is part of what gives the event its appeal. It is not simply about making syrup. It is also about slowing down, gathering outdoors, and taking part in a seasonal practice that links neighbors to the land and to one another.

City newsletters in recent years have highlighted the educational side of the event as well, with participants learning how much sap is required to make even a small amount of syrup. In 2023, the city reported that volunteers collected 420 gallons of sap and produced about 10 gallons of syrup.

For those gathered around the kettles this spring, the process was slow, smoky, and communal — a small but memorable rite of the season. In a town that values both tradition and stewardship, Wayzata’s annual maple tapping and syrup making remains a simple way to celebrate both.

Images submitted by Peter Hitch.

WAYZATA — A Hennepin County judge has voided Wayzata’s short-term rental ban, ruling that the city adopted the measure as if it were a licensing change when it legally functioned as a zoning ordinance and required a different public process. 

In an order filed March 30, Judge Joseph R. Klein held that Ordinance 852 “is a zoning ordinance,” that the City of Wayzata was required to follow the procedural requirements for enacting or amending zoning ordinances under the Minnesota Municipal Planning Act, and that because the city did not do so, the ordinance is “void.”

The ruling marks a major turn in a dispute that began last fall after Wayzata moved to prohibit rentals of fewer than 30 consecutive days in licensed rental dwellings.

The ordinance was adopted Sept. 23, 2025, after first and second readings on Sept. 9 and Sept. 23, and published Oct. 2. It changed the city code to require that licensed rental dwellings be occupied only under written leases of at least 30 days and added language stating that no person may lease or allow use of a dwelling unit as a short-term rental. Existing rental licenses held by the plaintiffs were set to expire March 30, 2026, with the ordinance taking effect for existing short-term rentals on April 1, 2026.

Property owners sued in October, arguing the city’s action was not merely a licensing amendment under Chapter 815, but a land-use regulation that should have gone through the zoning procedures required by state law, including a noticed public hearing before the Planning Commission. The city argued it was exercising its police powers and was not required to follow that process.

Judge Klein sided with the property owners on that core issue.

The court’s order does not resolve every question raised in the lawsuits. Klein denied, for now, the plaintiffs’ claim seeking a declaration on nonconforming-use rights, holding that issue was not ripe because the ordinance itself had already been found void. The court also did not reach the takings issue for the same reason.

That means the ruling turns on process, not on whether the city could ever regulate short-term rentals through a properly enacted zoning ordinance or whether any specific property owner has established vested rights.

The litigation traces back to two lawsuits filed in October and November 2025 by Wayzata homeowners seeking relief in district court. Those cases were later consolidated, according to the court’s background summary.

For Wayzata, the ruling is a significant setback in its effort to end short-term rentals through the ordinance adopted last year. For the plaintiffs, it is a clear win on the legal theory that the city changed the rules on land use without using the procedures Minnesota law requires for zoning changes.

Whether the city appeals, restarts the process, or takes another approach to regulating short-term rentals is likely to determine the next chapter in a debate that has already drawn close attention from property owners and city officials alike.

WAYZATA — The City Council paused during its public forum this month to recognize the service of Graciela Gonzalez, whose resignation from the Charter Commission marks the close of more than two decades of involvement across some of Wayzata’s most influential boards.

Mayor Andrew Mullin noted that Gonzalez is among a small group of residents who can say they’ve served across four different commissions — including the Heritage Preservation Board, Planning Commission, Park and Trails Board, and most recently the Charter Commission. Her tenure stretched across multiple terms beginning in the early 2000s.

“In her 30 years of living here, Graciela spent more than 20 of them serving her community,” Mullin said. “Your influence and presence on our community has been felt over those two decades.”

Mullin described Gonzalez as a consistent presence in council chambers and a “steadfast advisor” on a wide range of initiatives, adding that her departure will be felt.

“We’re sad to see you leave Wayzata,” he said. “You’ve been a fixture here.”

He also pointed to a piece of local history Gonzalez recently shared — a Lakeshore Weekly clipping from 2001 documenting her initial appointment — noting that even at that time, others like Kent Howe and Judy Starkey stepped aside to make room for her service, a reflection of the regard she held in the community.

When invited to speak, Gonzalez kept her remarks brief, focusing less on her own tenure and more on encouraging others to get involved.

“It’s been a privilege and an honor to serve Wayzata over those many years,” she said. “I would just encourage anybody to step up and apply for a board or a commission — it’s a wonderful opportunity to make a difference.”

She added a simple reminder that underscored her years of civic involvement:

“We live here, and we should care about what happens.”

Gonzalez is relocating to a warmer climate, closing a chapter of service that spanned more than 20 years and left a lasting imprint on the city’s boards, commissions, and civic life.