April 2019-The City has been approached by a development group looking to redevelop the former Walmart site. Because the site occupies a prominent location in the community, it is likely to attract the interest of a broad cross-section of the City and region. Redevelopment on large sites naturally raises questions of how a project proposal might impact public investments and infrastructure (including transportation systems and open space). The City’s Comprehensive Plan and Strategic Plan are the principal documents that lay out the policies and values that the City will use to evaluate any proposal.

The city is committed to upholding the values expressed in those documents. The most effective way to ensure that this is possible is to give all parties the opportunity to participate in the process. Finally, while this project is an important and visible one, it is just one aspect of St. Anthony Village’s life and community. No project achieves all of the City’s goals, however, it is important that every project contributes to the whole.

Toward that end, St. Anthony Village is committed to the following principles as this project is considered and reviewed:

• Compatibility with surrounding land uses. Compatibility means scale, height, and the ability to share resources with its neighborhood.
• Provision of adequate public infrastructure. New development must provide appropriate infrastructure, both public and private as necessary, to manage water supply, sanitary sewer service, stormwater impacts, transportation systems, open space, and any other related systems necessary to protect the surrounding area, and ensure the creation of a project that is worthy of the community for the long term.
• Support for responsible environmental practices. Development must meet or exceed any applicable standards for environmental protection, whether those are federal, state, regional (e.g. watershed district) or local regulations. Remediation of substandard conditions may be a component of this principle.
• A fair and open process for contributing to the process, as it relates to evaluation of the project and any related permitting. St. Anthony Village is committed to providing a wide variety of opportunities for community discourse and discussion, and will actively manage ways for members of the community to provide input, feedback, and commentary.
• All aspects of project input, from all parties, will be evaluated in the context of how such input furthers the policies and principles of the City’s Comprehensive and Strategic Plans. It should be noted that occasionally, meetings of the City Council and other city bodies may not facilitate public discussion at that meeting. However, and unless specifically provided for by law, all forums will be open to public attendance and feedback.

With these principles in place, it is expected that any proposed redevelopment project of the Walmart site will incorporate community’s values and objectives, contributing to the achievement of St. Anthony Village’s long-term goals.