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12 <br />C. PUBLIC PURPOSE OBJECTIVES <br />It is the policy of the City and EDA of Ramsey that the business assistance should result in a public <br />benefit as identified in items 1-10 below. Please indicate how the proposed project will accomplish <br />this by checking the appropriate boxes. Attach additional narrative as Part 7. <br />• 1. To encourage redevelopment. <br />® 2. To retain local jobs and/or increase the number and diversity of jobs that offer stable <br />employment and/or attractive wages and benefits. <br />® 3. To enhance and/or diversify the City's economic base. <br />❑ 4. To encourage additional unsubsidized private (re)development. <br />® 5. To remove blight and/or encourage (re)development of commercial and industrial <br />areas. <br />❑ 6. To create housing opportunities. <br />❑ 7. To provide a diversity of housing. <br />❑ 8. To provide a variety of family housing ownership alternatives and housing choices. <br />❑ 9. To promote neighborhood stabilization and revitalization by the removal of blight <br />and the upgrading of existing housing stock in residential areas. <br />❑ 10. To accomplish other public policies which may be adopted such as the promotion of <br />quality urban or architectural design, energy conservation, and decreasing capital <br />and/or operating costs of local government. <br />• Utilization of architectural and landscaping techniques that will enable the <br />components of the project to blend with the natural environment. <br />• Mitigation of project impact on the natural environment. <br />Public Purpose Narrative <br />This proposed project achieves four of the ten public purposes identified in the City of Ramsey's business <br />subsidy application (#1, #2, #3, and #5). In summary, this project removes a blighted property, encourages <br />redevelopment, and creates jobs. <br />This project removes a 20,000 square foot, blighted, bank -owned, building that has sat vacant, and available <br />for purchase, since 2004 (Health Quest property). In order to develop the Health Quest property, significant <br />redevelopment costs need to be overcome; including: acquisition of a property that carries an existing building <br />($450,000), demolition and site clean-up ($85,000), and capping of 90 geo-thermal wells ($50,000). Based on <br />discussion with the current Health Quest property owner, and prospects previously interested in the Health <br />Quest property, redevelopment costs outlined above have created a barrier to private market to reuse this <br />property. <br />Life Fitness has indicated this project will result in the creation of 26 new full-time jobs paying a minimum $16.85 <br />per hour (with an additional $7.08 of benefits per hour) over the course of two years. <br />This project enhances the City of Ramsey's economic base by securing the operation of a Fortune 500 company's <br />manufacturing facility within Ramsey, Minnesota for the foreseeable future (Life Fitness specifically). The Life <br />Fitness facility currently generates significant tax base and jobs (greatest number of jobs and largest facility in <br />Ramsey). Life Fitness is nearly out of space to grow on their existing site in Ramsey. By completing the currently <br />proposed project, the City of Ramsey and Minnesota will see additional significant tax base and job growth into <br />