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<br />City of Ramsey <br />Council/Staff Retreat <br />February 1,2, 2008 <br /> <br />STAFF EXPECTATIONS OF RETREAT <br />Each member of the management team stated the "one thing" he or she would like to have <br />discussed during the retreat. <br /> <br />Kurt: A collective vision for the City. <br /> <br />Sylvia: Effective communication between council and staff. <br /> <br />Diana: How do we meet the budget and meet the needs of the city, given our tax base? <br /> <br />Jim: How will we manage growth? How will we meet the demands for growth? <br /> <br />Brian: Infrastructure. Transportation. <br /> <br />Dean: The big picture. The long view. The vision. <br /> <br />Heidi: The long view and our priorities for 2-3 years. <br /> <br />OTHER COMMUNITIES: POSITIVES AND NEGATIVES <br />Top of Mind Exercise: Each person was given a blank piece of paper and asked to write down <br />what first comes to mind 1) when they think of a community or city they would not like Ramsey <br />to emulate and say why that is. and 2) when they think of a city they would like Ramsey to <br />take some aood thinas from and identify would those things might be. <br /> <br />This exercise was done to get the group thinking about a vision for Ramsey, to help sort out in <br />their minds what the like and what they dislike based up on what has happened in other <br />communities. <br /> <br />All attendees participated. <br /> <br />What community or city would yOU NOT want to emulate and why? <br />Answers given were: <br />Woodbury, Brooklyn Park. Dayton. Minneapolis. Albert Lea, Brooklyn Center. Anoka, Coon <br />Rapids and Ham Lake. <br /> <br />Negative aspects of the above cities include: sprawling development: seas of parking lots and <br />townhomes: too much high density development coupled with low end commercial <br />development: crime issues: poor transportation: all residential: too heavy and dense: nothing <br />to attract all kinds of families: no ability to live, work and play: declining commercial/residential <br />properties: old, run down. and boxed in: rat race: no central core of activity: poor planning for <br />the future: too much multi.:.family and apartments. <br /> <br />What city would YOU LIKE to take some aood thinas from and what would those thinas be? <br />Answers given were: <br />Plymouth. Maple Grove. Oakdale. Open Land. Downtown Buffalo, Wayzata, Woodbury and <br />Red Wing. <br /> <br />Positive aspects of the above cities include: many neighborhoods that matured well: great <br />public park system: family oriented: creation of destination city that people enjoy: thriving <br />commercial: great destination: diverse housing, open land with the ability to do anything. <br /> <br />2 <br /> <br />-32- <br />