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Printer version: A downtown renaissance in the suburbs Page 3 of 3 the suburbs. • "The baby boomer is getting older and wants an easier shopping experience, prefers to be close to home, prefers to be able to drive up," Maenner said. Others agree. "I moved into Wayzata 18 months ago, and I can tell you it's wonderful to be seconds from work instead of an hour from work," said Diane Wilson, president of the Wayzata Area Chamber of Commerce. "And then there's the small-town feel. It's a very comfortable thing to walk down the street and know everybody you see." Kevin Carroll, community development director for the city of Farmington, said he receives "a number of calls a month from people looking for downtown space, and, frankly, there isn't much to offer. People are looking at Farmington as a place to move a business because of the growth." The historic downtowns also have attracted new developments from public agencies that have built mixed-use proj ects to meet the demand for commercial space and senior housing. In downtown Lakeville, for example, the Dakota County Community Development Agency(CDA)built Main Street Manor,which has senior housing above retail and commercial space. A similar downtown building, called River City Centre, was built by the Scott County Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) in partnership with the city of Shakopee. Both projects are fully occupied. In Lakeville, the CDA changed its original design to incorporate elements of the architectural guidelines adopted by the city and the Downtown Lakeville Business Association. Bill Jaffa, director of the Scott County HRA, said these new buildings are good for historic downtowns and for commercial tenants,who appreciate the design guidelines. "We wanted to preserve the character of the old downtown,with apartments above storefronts,bay windows and French balconies," Jaffa said. "So you're going into an historic replica structure that has different character, and the rent is more reasonable." Jaffa claims that the Shakopee building,which was built in 1997, has pioneered interest in these "new- old" buildings in suburban downtowns."A lot of the stuff being done now came after the prototype of River City Centre," he said. Larry Werner is at lwerner@startribune.com. ©Copyright 2003 Star Tribune.All rights reserved. S http://www.startribune.com/viewers/story.php?template=print_a&story=3907199 5/29/2003