Agenda - Council - 12/14/1999 - Laserfiche WebLink

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I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I MINNESOTA INVESTMENT FUND COMMUNITY NEED NARRATIVE Economic Vulnerability of the Community. The City of Ramsey is located in the northwest section of Anoka County. The county has consistently ranked as one of the fastest growing population centers in the Twin City Metro Area and the state of Minnesota. The City of Ramsey is.one of the few remaining cities in the county that has land available for development inside the Metropolitan Urban Service Area (MUSA). This has led to pressures on the City to allow significant residential development while having a limited corresponding commercial/industrial tax base to support it. The City has a disproportional level of its tax base in single family housing. With the average value of a single family home being $111,517.00 (1996 assessment) and the cost of providing basic services requiring a home value of $249,000, the City is positioned to experience a significant funding shortage to provide necessary services. This projected problem has led the City to develop a program seeking the diversification of the tax base through industrial development. By pursuing industrial development, the City will also address the current problem of a lack of employment opportunities within the City limits. In a recent survey, the city found that only 10 percent of City residents were employed within the City of Ramsey. This survey also indicated that over 65 percent of the community's residents commuted to jobs in the interior of the metropolitan area. In addition, Metropolitan Council studies have shown that the greatest number of commuters from Sherburne, Isanti and Chisago Counties are traveling through Anoka County to Hennepin County. This large percentage of commuters has contributed to the continued additional demand for transportation capacity increases for major roadways in the immediate area. As an example, the state recently completed improvements to Highway 10 and the new North Crosstown Freeway. These improvements cost the state in excess of $140 million absorbing a large portion of the metro area's funds dedicated toward freeway improvements. These improvements were necessary to relieve congestion caused by commuters traveling to employment outside of Anoka County. The City is seeking assistance in the form of a grant from the Minnesota Department of Trade and Economic Development in the amount of $250,000. The grant will be used to provide partial project financing for the construction of an 80,000 SF manufacturing facility by a company known as Systematic Refrigeration, Inc. The total project cost for construction of the facility along with needed equipment is estimated to be approximately $3.5 million. It is anticipated that the company will create 50 new jobs in the state of Minnesota S-3