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Mounds View EDA July 14, 2003 <br />Regular Meeting Page 5 <br /> <br /> 172 <br />Mr. Minkstra indicated he was a mechanical engineer. 173 <br /> 174 <br />Economic Development Coordinator Backman indicated he has found Twin City testing to be 175 <br />above board and has had no negative experiences with them. He further commented that he did 176 <br />not tell them what to report they simply reported what was found when the soil borings were 177 <br />done. 178 <br /> 179 <br />Mr. Backman indicated that there are willing parties involved with the project and one of those 180 <br />private owners is Mr. Fyksen. 181 <br /> 182 <br />Mr. Fyksen of 3048 County Road H2 indicated that he has listened to the comments this evening 183 <br />and he is also a nature lover. He then said that a City needs to keep growing to continue to thrive 184 <br />and since there are financial constraints for the City right now this redevelopment project is a 185 <br />way of generating revenue for the City. 186 <br /> 187 <br />Mr. Fyksen further commented that there is not much higher end housing in Mounds View and 188 <br />he feels this development offers existing residents the opportunity to upgrade their housing 189 <br />without having to leave the City. 190 <br /> 191 <br />Mr. Fyksen indicated that he feels having a $400,000 or $500,000 home located next to his 192 <br />$200,000 rental property will only increase its value and not detract from it. He further 193 <br />commented that there are deer all over in the City and there are plenty of wild areas for them so 194 <br />developing this area will not drive them out. 195 <br /> 196 <br />Mr. Fyksen indicated that he is open to negotiations on selling his property and feels he has the 197 <br />right to do that if he wants to. He also thanked the City for indicating that they did not intend to 198 <br />use eminent domain to force a sale if negotiations are unsuccessful. 199 <br /> 200 <br />Jim Melcher of Pro Craft Homes indicated that they have received positive feedback from other 201 <br />residents that are interested in upgrading their housing and want to stay in Mounds View. 202 <br /> 203 <br />Vice President Stigney indicated there had been a question concerning damp basements and then 204 <br />asked whether there is a guarantee on water infiltration on the homes to be built. 205 <br /> 206 <br />Mr. Melcher indicated that he has always been very responsible for the condition of the home 207 <br />when it is sold as well as after that with the warranty he provides. He then said that it does not 208 <br />do him any good to build a house with a wet basement because it tarnishes his reputation and he 209 <br />has to pay to fix it anyway so the utmost care will be taken to ensure that the basements are not 210 <br />wet. He further commented that drain tiling would be used and the roadbed would be raised to 211 <br />create natural drainage. 212 <br /> 213