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<br />SUMMARY OF RESEARCH AND RECOMMENDED STRATEGIES <br />EDA STRATEGIC PLAN 11 <br />3. LAND AVAILABILITY <br />The availability of land is a key factor in attracting new industrial development, as is the <br />readiness of the land for development. The City of Elk River owns two sites in its Northstar <br />Business Park, a 4-acre parcel and a 12 acre parcel. Additional land for new industrial <br />development is in short supply, as are large sites suitable for industrial development. Two <br />locations have been discussed for future industrial development. 1) Some of the reclaimed <br />land in the City’s gravel mining area can be guided for industrial development, but that will <br />have to wait until the completion of mining in certain areas. 2) Cargill has abundant land <br />holdings along and near 165th Avenue NW, some of which is not currently utilized and <br />would be well suited to industrial development. Elk River staff have not had recent <br />conversations with decision makers at <br />Cargill to discuss Cargill’s plans for this <br />land. <br />Strategies for teeing up land for industrial <br />development was a topic of conversation in <br />our peer cities interviews. Economic <br />development leadership in Oakdale and <br />Chaska had successful track records in <br />establishing an industrial development <br />pipeline in local industrial parks. They had <br />different philosophies regarding whether <br />cities should take ownership of land. But <br />they agreed on core elements of how to <br />make development parcels ready to go, and <br />thereby increase the attractiveness of their <br />industrial parks. <br />Land, with the support of the land owner, <br />should be master-planned with road layouts <br />and conceptual parcels that meet the needs <br />of today’s industrial development market. It <br />should be zoned appropriately. The <br />availability of utilities should be ensured. <br />Decisions should be made concerning how <br />road and utility costs will be shared between <br />the developer and the City. A map of the <br />business park, that clearly indicates <br />development parcels, should be created to <br />convey the availability of land and an <br />organized municipality. (An example of <br />such a map, in North Mankato, is at left.) <br />Strategies/Actions <br />3a. Develop business park site maps for future and existing industrial parks to include in <br />materials for site selectors, interested businesses and developers.