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Authority (EDA) and the Ramsey Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA), these organizations are included as blended component units in these financial statements. The City provides a variety of municipal services. These include a full-time police department, a volunteer fire department, engineering services, street and park maintenance, building inspections, planning and zoning, public improvements, general administrative services, and public water and sewer utilities in the urban service areas. The City adopts an annual budget for the General Fund and the EDA Special Revenue Fund. Legal level of control is at the function level. LOCALECONOMY The City has an unemployment rate of 3.2% in comparison to the state's average of 4.0% and a national average of 5.1%. Anoka County, in which Ramsey is located, has an employed labor force of approximately 193,193. The City's General Fund has three major categories of funding sources which accounted for 77% of the total revenue (including transfers) in 2005: general property taxes at 55%, licenses and permits at 14%, and transfers from other funds at 8%. In prior years, intergovernmental revenue was the second largest category of revenue for the General Fund. In the past two years it has dropped to approximately 5% of total revenue. Intergovernmental revenue includes state aids, such as Local Government Aid (LGA), Market Value Homestead Credit (MVHC), Highway Maintenance Aid, Fire Relief Aid, Police Aid, and County grants. Due to severe budget deficits in the state of Minnesota, the City has not received LGA since fiscal year 2003. The LGA distribution formula has been revised and funding greatly reduced, with the City being one of the many developing cities seeing a total reduction of LGA. In prior years, the average amount of LGA received was over $300,000 annually. LONG-TERM FINANCIAL PLANNING As part of the City's strategic plan, the following long-term goals have been established: Complete build-out of Ramsey Town Center's residential and commercial components. Create and protect an intemonnected system of athletic areas, parks, trails, and green spaces throughout the city. Implement a plan for urban growth in the city. Complete new municipal center. Determine needs for future municipal facilities and acquire/preserve the land necessary to meet these needs. Modify Comprehensive Plan, Transportation Section, to include a multi-modal transit plan that specifically includes the Northstar Station. Advocate with other agencies to develop a Regional Transportation Plan to support the needs of the Ramsey community. Create a Technology Plan to provide access to a state-of-art technology network throughout the city. MAJOR INITIATIVES Since 1990, the City has been attempting to provide improved services to a dramatically increasing number of households in a time of fiscal constraints at the state level. From the 1990 census to the 2005 projection, Ramsey's population has increased by 85%. At the same time, aids from the state of Minnesota have decreased. Ramsey Town Center (RTC) Project continues to move forward in development. RTC is a 370-acre, mixed-use development located on U.S. Highway 10 between Ramsey Boulevard. and Armstrong Boulevard in the City of Ramsey. The RTC will have over 2,800 housing units; 775,000 sq. fi. of