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10 Development Opportunities on City-Owned Land | Lake Elmo, Minnesota <br />• Advance sustainability and resilience. <br />Community members value the city’s <br />natural beauty and recognize the <br />opportunity to showcase sustainability <br />and resilience in new developments. <br />By encouraging lower-carbon building <br />materials and processes, more <br />sustainable products, and promoting <br />resilience measures, development at the <br />site could strive to become a net-zero <br />addition to the city. These measures <br />could help to advance some of the City’s <br />sustainability goals while also advancing <br />its economic and social goals. <br />• Integrate open space and trails. The city’s <br />open space and trail networks are valued <br />across Lake Elmo. Planning early can <br />help ensure that there are opportunities <br />at the site to connect the eventual uses <br />on the site to the broader citywide trail <br />network, supporting greater connectivity <br />and helping ensure that the site does not <br />instead become a barrier to community <br />connectivity. <br />• Effectively manage transitions. Change <br />can be difficult, and the public sector <br />management of development across a <br />site of this size and visibility will require <br />extra care. Being mindful of community <br />perceptions and communicating as openly <br />and transparently as possible can help <br />ease community concerns along the way. <br />By continuing the engagement begun <br />through the TAP process, there is also the <br />potential to inspire community champions, <br />neighbors who can engage with other <br />neighbors constructively, rather than <br />further the rise of potential NIMBYs. <br />Contributions to the City <br />Development at the study site has <br />the potential to provide the following <br />contributions to the Lake Elmo community. <br />• Fiscal and economic benefits. Taxes, <br />increased daytime population, and <br />increased spending by new residents and <br />employees at businesses locating on the <br />site can all support the economic health <br />of the city. <br />• New services. New attractors and <br />services for Lake Elmo could take the <br />form of new jobs, new retail and services, <br />and perhaps new destinations for <br />community members to enjoy. <br />• New and enhanced housing options. <br />Housing at the site should cater to <br />different lifecycle choices than those <br />currently available in the city. These could <br />include one-floor living options or smaller <br />homes with less associated maintenance. <br />The panel also recognized that smaller <br />homes and smaller lots may also provide <br />the community with new price points <br />that could cater to first-time homebuyers, <br />young professionals, and families with <br />young children. <br />• Gateway to Lake Elmo. The location of the <br />site, so close to Oakdale, positions it as a <br />gateway to Lake Elmo, and it should serve <br />as a welcoming point to the community. <br />• Green space network. The city’s parks and <br />trails are important community amenities, <br />and trails and connectivity across the site <br />can help fill some of the gaps currently <br />experienced in the city’s green network. <br />The nearby Village can also be supported by <br />development at the study site. <br />• Economic benefits. Improvements at <br />the site can help to feed the energy of <br />the Village as a destination, connecting <br />people in the uses at the study site with <br />the offerings found in the Village. <br />• Physical benefits. The physical distance <br />between the study site and the Village <br />could be covered by an enjoyable bike ride <br />or a healthy walk, if given the opportunity <br />to use trails instead of riding along 34th <br />Street. <br />Development at the study site should complement and not <br />compete with uses in the Village.