2019 Administration Department Annual Report

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2019 Annual Report • Administration • St. Anthony Village, Minnesota 48 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN In 2016, the city began updating the Comprehensive Plan, which is required to be completed every 10 years. After a multi-year public engagement process, the Comprehensive Plan was submitted to the Metropolitan Council in 2018. We heard that people love the schools, proximity to the Twin Cities, the quiet, small-town feel, and the city's reputation as a sustainability leader. The community indicated opportunities for change as well. People want more bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. Sustainability initiatives should continue to be pursued and implemented. Long-time residents should be enabled and encouraged to stay, while enabling and encouraging new people. Housing affordability is an increasing challenge with rents and property values increasing. One of the most significant changes to the land use planning was an incorporation of the potential for multi-family residential uses in commercially-guided areas, in densities ranging from 25 to 40 units per acre. As part of the Comprehensive Plan Update, the city undertook a series of community engagement activities to garner input from a variety of St. Anthony residents. Such efforts included reaching out to students at the high school, attending Early Childhood Family Education classes to engage with families with young children, visiting senior centers in the area, conducting a community visioning session, and appearing at the wine event at the SAV Liquor Store. These activities were completed with the intent of reaching out to people who generally would not attend a traditional open house, and were very successful. Key themes that were heard related to the convenience and proximity of goods, services, and public places within the community, the desire to be able to easily connect with these locations through biking and walking, and the desire to re-use the vacant Walmart site. In this regard, the City approved a multi-family redevelopment project on the referenced “Walmart” site, which is scheduled for construction over the next few years. DEVELOPMENTS The City received several requests (both formal and informal) for multi-family residential development in 2019. One of these proceeded through the process to City Council approval – the redevelopment of the Walmart property by Doran Companies. This project will consist of