A different easement path

Star Tribune Sat, 19 Jan 2008 01:12:11 GMT
Wanted: Land with a permanently spectacular view

To protect water quality, the Minnehaha Creek Watershed District has begun buying -- and selling -- land.

Moving aggressively to save the woods, wetlands and meadows that can naturally remove pollutants from storm water before it reaches Lake Minnetonka, the watershed district has outlined 17,000 acres, mostly in the far western suburbs, where it would consider buying open land.

Initially the water board plans to spend about $2 million a year for land acquisition. Over the next 10 years the total could reach $30 million.

The watershed district is moving into real estate acquisition because new home construction upstream of Lake Minnetonka is the greatest impending threat to water quality in the lake, said Mark Ten Eyke, manager of the land conservation program for the watershed district.

One of the district's first purchases was a picturesque 38.62 acres near Painter Creek in Minnetrista, where it plans to restore prairie along a tributary to the creek and keep most of the land free from development forever. The district paid $778,100 for the tract on Jan. 4, 2006, and plans to recoup $350,000 by selling 7 acres for three home sites overlooking the protected open space.

[[keywords: LandUse;Legal;Living;Metro;]]

the accompianing graphic:
Star Tribune Fri, 18 Jan 2008 22:46:21 GMT
A NEW LAND CONSERVATION ZONE

The Minnehaha Creek Watershed District, (MCWD) has entered the real estate market. Under a new land conservation program designed to promote clean water, the district will consider buying any land that may go on the market in the areas outlined below. In many cases, the district would buy the land and impose permanent easements to protect open space and then resell it as a choice piece of property with a view that will never change.

[[keywords: LandUse;Legal;Metro;]]

All aboard!

Star Tribune Sat, 19 Jan 2008 05:25:54 GMT
Study: High-speed rail to Duluth costly, attractive

Proposed train appeals to many along the line, including the owners of the Grand Casino in Hinckley. The cost of the proposed passenger rail line from Minneapolis to Duluth could exceed $400 million -- $50 million more than previously projected -- and there's no guarantee that federal funding will cover 80 percent of the project as local officials hope, the rail expert who recently completed a study of the line said. But a potential partnership with the Mille Lacs tribe, enthusiasm from federal officials and unexpected support along the corridor have rail experts considering additional stations and running as many as eight trains along the route each day.

[[keywords: LandUse;PublicWorks;Living;Metro;]]

Or park your car in Burnsville

Star Tribune Wed, 20 Feb 2008 13:23:23 GMT
Burnsville businesses say success hinges on more parking

Parking shortages discourage customers from doing business in the Heart of the City. The city is planning a 250-space deck. At Jensen's Cafe, owner Doron Jensen says he's convinced the survival of his business and others in Burnsville's Heart of the City hinges on whether city leaders provide more downtown parking spots -- and how fast they do it. At Jensen's, along busy Burnsville Parkway at Nicollet, Jensen said he opened with the belief that the city would provide enough parking. "It's a must," he said. He's facing the same challenge as business owners around the country who are moving into new suburban downtown areas but discovering one big drawback: Customers have to hoof it because they can't find nearby parking -- a serious problem in cold-weather climates like Minnesota's.

[[keywords: LandUse;PublicWorks;Metro;]]

Scotchguard chemical stains area lakes

Star Tribune Wed, 30 Jan 2008 12:43:27 GMT
3M chemical found in nine more metro lakes

Stormwater runoff could be behind the elevated levels of PFOS; 11 other lakes studied showed little or no trace of it. A chemical formerly manufactured by 3M has been found at elevated levels in nine more metro area lakes, according to a study released Tuesday, and is likely entering the waters through stormwater runoff. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) collected 381 fish from 20 lakes and two river reaches last spring and summer. They were analyzed them for PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonate) and related compounds. 3M manufactured the chemical for decades for use in Scotchgard, firefighting foams and other products before ceasing production in 2002. The metro lakes study began after the surprise discovery last spring of relatively high levels of PFOS in bluegills from Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis. Scientists couldn't explain the source of the contamination, because the lake is not near any known areas where 3M manufactured or disposed of the chemical. ...The lakes with elevated levels of PFOS in fish are: Lake Johanna (Arden Hills), Cedar (Minneapolis), Harriet, Hiawatha, Jane, Keller, Powers, Red Rock and Tanners. Waters with little or no trace of PFOS are Cedar (Scott County), Centerville, Colby, Green Mountain, Hydes, Independence, Nokomis, Peltier, Upper Prior, Sarah and Silver.

[[keywords: LandUse;Ramsey;Metro;]]

Consumation

Star Tribune Tue, 15 Apr 2008 04:38:20 GMT
Ramsey County gets Postal Service OK to buy part of Union Depot

Ramsey County got final approval from U.S. Postal Service officials to buy part of the Union Depot and adjacent land in downtown St. Paul. County Manager David Twa said he received verbal confirmation about the Postal Service Board of Governors decision last week. The nearly $50 million sale gives the county the depot's rear concourse and about 9 acres of land. The county has long envisioned the Union Depot as a regional transportation hub for rail, buses, bicycles and taxis. The depot lobby, or headhouse, is privately owned.

[[keywords: LandUse;PropertyTax;Ramsey;]]

Something we can do every day

Star Tribune Tue, 08 Apr 2008 12:28:06 GMT
Twin Cities groceries deal with recycling plastic bags

ST. PAUL - Grocery stores across the Twin Cities are trying to get a handle on plastic bags. Plastic bags take up landfill space and require lots of oil to make. The bags can take thousands of years to degrade in landfills. In the Twin Cities, a crew of a couple dozen people collects plastic bags from area grocery stores. The crews work for a recycling program called "It's in the Bag," a partnership among grocery stores and some businesses. The program hires adults with developmental disabilities to collect, sort and bale plastic bags for recycling. Bags are not accepted if they are crinkled, black, dirty, wet or have strings. And while the "It's in the Bag" program has kept 1.1 million pounds of plastic bags out of landfills each of the past two years, John Crea of Merrick Inc., the company that runs the program, points out that they're capturing "a fraction of what's out there to be captured."

[[keywords: LandUse;Living;Metro;]]

End of an era

Pioneer Press Tue, 08 Jan 2008 13:17:26 -0700
3M to sell last campus parcel; 1,000 jobs leave St. Paul

3M Companies announced this week it would sell its entire campus on the East Side of St. Paul, bringing to a close a nearly century-old relationship between the Maplewood-based industrial products manufacturer and Minnesota's capital city.

[[keywords: LandUse;Living;Ramsey;]]

Harder to see 'Bridges' from downtown with this in the way

Star Tribune Fri, 11 Jan 2008 06:11:09 GMT
Opus, Ramsey County reach riverfront land deal

Developer would pay $10 million for prime parcel along Kellogg Boulevard in downtown St. Paul. Ramsey County and a developer have agreed on a $10 million purchase price for prime riverfront land in downtown St. Paul. County commissioners are expected to vote on the deal Tuesday. Opus Northwest, based in Minnetonka, hopes to buy the 6-acre site of the old West Publishing complex and the adjacent vacant county jail. The site stretches along Kellogg Boulevard and the Mississippi River bluffs from Market to Wabasha streets. Opus would use the entire parcel to build a hotel, condominiums and offices. The cost would be at least $200 million, and the project could be built in phases or all at once.

[[keywords: LandUse;Ramsey;]]

Property tax managers skipping town

Star Tribune Thu, 29 Nov 2007 20:56:04 CST
Ramsey County department makes move across the river

The Property Records and Revenue Department should be up and running Monday at its new site. The consolidation should please residents: Parking will be free. It's about to get a lot easier to look up a property record or get an absentee ballot in Ramsey County -- depending on whether you live and work downtown or are coming from elsewhere. The Property Records and Revenue Department, which also contains the elections office, is moving this weekend from its space along downtown St. Paul's river bluff to an open building on the West Side. Parking will be free. ... The space left behind will likely be filled by county employees currently working in the "F Building," the easternmost part of the West complex. County commissioners voted 6 to 1 in October to raze the F building and old county jail, which sits vacant, as part of county efforts to shed its prime riverfront real estate. The county is negotiating with two developers, Minnesota-based Opus Northwest and Belgium-based WingField, which each want the land to build a mix of housing, hotel, office and shop space. The County Board is expected to choose one of the purchase agreements on Dec. 18.

[[keywords: LandUse;PropertyTax;Ramsey;]]

Ripples

Star Tribune Thu, 08 May 2008 01:40:15 GMT
Apple Valley still waiting for 'village' project to be finished

The developer will ask council members to approve more changes for a downsized project that originally was to be complete this spring. With $2.3 million in public grant money on the line, a key developer in Apple Valley's partly built, much-touted walkable downtown is once again asking city leaders to give the OK for changes to plans for a mix of new housing and retail space. Pedersen Ventures is expected to ask the City Council tonight for the go-ahead to downsize plans for the Village at Founders Circle, a previously approved project at Galaxie Avenue and 153rd Street that hit rough water when the condominium market tanked. The project drew ire from city leaders two years ago when Pedersen asked for -- and got -- permission to lease many of its planned condos instead of selling them.

[[keywords: LandUse;Housing;Metro;]]

Democracy at work protecting a park. No easement needed

Star Tribune Fri, 18 Apr 2008 05:33:55 GMT
Hundreds attend waterfront hearing in Excelsior

The predominant message at a public hearing on a developer's plans for a pavilion on the city's Lake Minnetonka waterfront was a resounding no. Three hundred Excelsior residents showed up for a public hearing on a developer's plans for a pavilion on the city's Lake Minnetonka waterfront, and the predominant message was a resounding no. "I believe in non-compromising preservation of the lakefront,'' said resident Peter Hartwich, one of 55 people who signed up to speak before the City Council Wednesday night. "We have an obligation to Excelsior to preserve our identity.''

[[keywords: LandUse;Metro;]]

I can't talk right now, I have to mow the roof

Star Tribune Wed, 11 Jun 2008 16:17:46 GMT
Green roof takes root at Minneapolis City Hall

The courtyard roof of Minneapolis' City Hall and the Hennepin County Courthouse is going green. Workers will plant it with more than 40 varieties of plants, wildflowers, grasses, shrubs and vines, most of them native to Minnesota. The courtyard roof of Minneapolis' City Hall and the Hennepin County Courthouse is going green. Weather permitting, workers will continue planting more than 40 varieties of plants, wildflowers, grasses, shrubs and vines at 11 a.m. Thursday. Some of the planting began Tuesday, said Spokesman Matt Laible. Most of the plants being used to cover the 5,000-square-foot space are native to Minnesota. Among them are Bottlebrush Grass, Jack-in-the Pulpit, Prairie Clover, Phlox, Virginia Creeper and wild strawberries. The courtyard roof is a outdoor rectangular area on the interior of City Hall. The roof top covers some of the lower levels of City Hall and can be seen only from windows inside the building at 350 S. 4th Street.

[[keywords: LandUse;Living;Metro;]]

Quote of the day: "remarkably underwhelming"

Pioneer Press 06/12/2008 04:34:39 AM GMT
Central Corridor station designs get cool response

It's either simple and sleek or simple and lame, depending on whom you ask. And since there will be at least 15 of them, the question of whether the design of the Central Corridor light-rail stations is cool or stupid matters. Kyle Williams, an architect for the planned light-rail line linking St. Paul and Minneapolis, presented the early design to members of a key advisory panel Wednesday. An apprentice of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe might smile at the simplicity of the concrete platforms anchoring flat glass-and-steel shelters, but a fan of Frank Gehry might stare blankly â€" as Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak did. "This is remarkably underwhelming," Rybak told Williams. "This idea about being 'simple and transparent' is not going to give the lift to University Avenue we want."

[[keywords: LandUse;PublicWorks;Metro;]]

Don't stand on your land, you're blocking my view!

Star Tribune Mon, 04 Feb 2008 05:02:10 GMT
Golf courses make good neighbors, until the owners want to sell

Course owners in Andover and elsewhere who want to redevelop their land for profit are finding bitter neighborhood opposition. They also are finding that, sometimes, their property rights end at the city hall's door. ... Nationwide, rising land values and diminished demand are an incentive for golf course owners to sell out. Last year, U.S. golf course closures outpaced openings, according to the National Golf Foundation. The same was true in 2006. But many golf courses are zoned as open space; thus cities can prevent development of the property. That's sparking battles between course owners and cities around the metro area. It's happened in Eden Prairie, where a course owner had planned to sell his struggling course to a housing developer for as much as $18 million; in Plymouth, where the city recently removed two courses from restrictive zoning but kept another in it; and in Eagan, where the city denied an owner's request to rezone. That last case is still in court. In each city, neighbors and residents have leaned on public officials to maintain the space they've counted on for their views, their recreation and their property values. ... Left unanswered in that case was a question of whether a city's decision to deny a request might trigger a claim for "inverse condemnation," or "taking of the property," said Tom Grundhoefer, chief legal counsel for the League of Minnesota Cities.

[[keywords: LandUse;Metro;]]

Eye of the beholder

Star Tribune Sun, 03 Feb 2008 04:07:02 GMT
Backers insist Heart of the City still a success

The Burnsville City Council is pondering its next move after a major component of the development fell through. But some say the real job is trying to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. The latest setback for Burnsville's highly touted Heart of the City project has given critics one more reason to characterize it as a failure. But Mayor Elizabeth Kautz stands by the 54-acre redevelopment that's providing revenue and a downtown area for the suburb. "Heart of the City is a success," she said Friday. She commented during a meeting in which the City Council planned its next steps after a developer backed out of building a $20 million office complex and parking ramp next to Nicollet Commons Park. The mayor blames the lagging economy for Anderson Builders' decision not to redevelop one of the last parcels in the huge project. The dilemma has left the city once again seeking a developer -- and scrambling to provide parking for a $20 million arts and convention center scheduled to open next fall. With some of the completed projects already struggling with occupancy rates, one Burnsville developer has called the entire project a failure.

[[keywords: LandUse;Metro;]]

Could it be on the ski hill?

Star Tribune Wed, 12 Dec 2007 03:57:57 GMT
Afton tower timeline has Sheriff's Office worried

Washington County's quest to place the last of 14 towers needed for a new radio system won't go to the City Council until February. But while the county effort to arrange a tower in Afton avoided defeat recently by a 3-2 City Council vote, it now faces a series of procedures and hearings lasting into February. The tower is controversial in Afton because of concern that it would spoil the city's natural beauty and might lead to other towers.

[[keywords: LandUse;PublicSafety;Metro;]]

Carping about water quality

Star Tribune Mon, 26 Nov 2007 22:29:11 CST
In Twin Cities suburbs, all lakes are not created equal

With thousands of small suburban lakes collecting runoff and no one managing them day-to-day, clean water is an elusive and sometimes impractical goal....Many residents who live on shallow suburban lakes, even ones dug by developers as storm water collectors, want the Minnesota ideal: clear water and an open shore, just like the big lakes up North. But unless a lake is fairly deep and protected from storm water, it's almost certainly not going to happen, experts say. "Minnesotans love their lakes," said Kevin Bigalke, administrator for the Nine Mile Creek Watershed District, which includes Cornelia. "The mindset is that all lakes are equal, and they're not. These shallow lakes function very differently from lakes such as Mille Lacs." Bob Kojetin, a 50-year Edina resident who is the city's retired parks and recreation director and a member of the Nine Mile District board, said Cornelia hasn't changed much in decades. "You're never going to get the lakes the way people want them to be," he said. "We can try to work toward clean water standards ... and keep noxious weeds out." But taking conditions back to when Edina was a farming community, he said, is "almost impossible." Many metro-area lakes share Cornelia's water quality problems. In 2006, lakes that were on the Met Council's "Worst-Ten List" included George Watch in Lino Lakes, Colby in Woodbury, Loon in Stillwater Township, Cedar Island in Maple Grove, Hazeltine in Chaska, Upper Twin in Crystal and Eagle Point in Lake Elmo.

[[keywords: LandUse;Metro;]]

Selling public assets not so easy

Star Tribune Mon, 28 Apr 2008 03:33:41 GMT
Real estate: Opus likely to get extension

A tight market for top-tier office space in St. Paul could help Opus in its search for an anchor for its proposed development. Although the weak economy is leading to a softer office market, Opus Northwest remains optimistic that it will be able to meet a new deadline for securing an anchor tenant for its proposed redevelopment of a prime riverfront site in downtown St. Paul. Ramsey County commissioners reportedly have agreed to give Opus an additional six months to sign a tenant for the project on the site of the old West Publishing complex and adjacent county jail. The County Board is expected to approve the new agreement soon. On the surface, Opus would seem to have its work cut out for it in finding a large corporate tenant in downtown St. Paul, traditionally among the weakest office markets in the Twin Cities area. A recent report by the local office of Colliers Turley Martin Tucker said that, at the end of the first quarter, the vacancy rate for office space in downtown St. Paul was 26.3 percent, compared with 16.9 percent for the overall Twin Cities area.

[[keywords: LandUse;PropertyTax;Metro;]]

Holiday decorating possibilities

Star Tribune Wed, 30 Apr 2008 01:21:20 GMT
Afton tower foes: It may look like a tree, but it's not

Some Afton residents oppose a radio "stealth" tower near their homes. Designed to resemble a pine, it's part of a public safety network. Afton residents who live near the proposed site for a Washington County public safety communications tower told commissioners Tuesday that the tower would stand out too much and hurt their property values. "We don't think that's an appropriate site for the tower," said Diane Dettmann, who lives in the Afton Hills subdivision, where the 88-foot "stealth" tower -- resembling a large pine tree -- would be installed. Dettmann said 14 houses surround the 1.6-acre site. "There are a lot of people who don't want the tower for a number of reasons," she said. Another Afton Hills resident, Frank Sando, said that neighbors had considered buying the land at 15326 Afton Hills Court South, owned by Jeffrey and Jennifer Morgan, to stop construction of the tower. But Jeffrey Morgan, in a later interview, said he's trying to do the right thing for the city where he's lived for 20 years. "I wouldn't like to spoil Afton at all," he said.

[[keywords: LandUse;PublicSafety;Metro;]]

No more buttons to push

Pioneer Press Wed, 02 Apr 2008 22:59:27 -0600
Rosemount / City OKs Town Centre project

Without a peep from the public, Rosemount officials have approved final plans for redeveloping a downtown block that has been the epicenter of past controversy. No residents voiced concern as plans for the Town Centre project cruised through the planning commission in February and the City Council last month. But getting to the final step has hardly been easy for the city, which began acquiring land at the roughly 3-acre downtown site â€" known as Core Block East â€" more than 10 years ago. Most notably, in December, the city avoided using eminent domain after reaching an agreement with a local landowner for the final piece it wanted for the project. In the months leading up to a scheduled court hearing on the matter, residents and businesses circulated petitions and spoke out against the approach the city threatened to use to acquire the half-acre parcel. In the end, the city and landowner Kurt Hansen, a local veterinarian, agreed on a $525,000 selling price. If eminent domain proceedings had played out, it would have been the first time in more than 20 years the city had used the process to attain property. Instead, the agreement with Hansen allowed city officials to move ahead with plans and concentrate on design details such as the amount of brick on the facade, landscaping and the style of lights. Important, yes, but hardly contentious.

[[keywords: LandUse;Metro;]]