Eagan Springs Into Action

“The state of our city continues to be strong,” Mayor Mike Maguire told 100-plus attendees at the State of the City event on Thursday, March 21. Of course, every mayor likes to paint a rosy picture of their community, but in Eagan’s case, it’s also true.

Four quick points of evidence: 
 • Over the past year, Fortune magazine named Eagan one of the best U.S. cities for families. 
 • Eagan’s public works team helped the City secure a National Voice of the People award for its mobility.
 • The latest community survey showed residents’ top priorities are mirrored by the City; residents continue to rate the City highly in those areas.
 • And Eagan once again secured a Triple-A credit rating.

Just minutes before Maguire took the stage, the crowd had been welcomed by Jon Althoff, president of the Dakota County Regional Chamber of Commerce, and Tom Walrath, vice president of Global Real Estate and Facility Management at Thomson Reuters. The latter served as host since the event was held at the brand-new headquarters of this leading provider of business information services. 

Maguire noted that Thomson Reuters’ move had only been imagined after the pandemic had forced and then enabled employees to work from home. Since then, “change and uncertainty are in the air,” and many corporate campuses, Thomson Reuters among them, are downsizing across the Twin Cities and the United States. “In this new season, companies are using less office space, but looking for more out of it,” he noted.

“While we aren’t alone,” he said, “I’d argue that we’re better and more uniquely prepared than those other communities.” Why? Because Eagan has faced such challenges before — 
for example, when Cedarvale Mall closed and when Lockheed Martin departed. Over time, the City Council, staff, and developers worked together to create new entities, such as Central Park Commons, the Twin Cities Premium Outlet Mall, and Viking Lakes.

“I can confidently stand here and share that I’m not anxious about our future — with good reason,” Maguire said. “That reason is that we listen attentively when our businesses share their needs with us — and then we seek ways to meet those needs — collaboratively.” Additionally, the mayor praised City staff’s all-hands on-deck effort to work with Thomson Reuters to help them continue to call Eagan home.

Maguire also applauded the efforts of City Administrator Dianne Miller and Community Development Director Jill Hutmacher, who realized over a year ago that a great deal of thought and community feedback would need to go into envisioning new uses around Eagan Central Park, which includes the Unisys site, former Delta site, and the new Eagan Central (formerly Argosy University).

By creating the Northwest Central Commons Small Area Plan, they “collaborated with property owners, schools, stakeholders, and Eagan residents to create a vision for these spaces that would serve the needs of the property owners and our community.” Today, the selected plan is helping to communicate the City’s vision for this area to developers, property owners, and the community. 

Of course, Maguire noted that the “path for redevelopment on largescale properties is rarely a straight one,” referring to a recent decision by Johnson Brothers Liquor Distributors to withdraw its proposal to purchase the former Blue Cross Blue Shield site in Eagan. “Once again, the future of that site and the accompanying Delta Dental campus are uncertain as we patiently wait for what options the market brings.”

Regarding other business-related topics, Maguire recognized that Eagan must: 

• Continue to create a community where employees actually want to work — by offering “trails, transit, restaurants, retail, recreation, and nature.” (Regarding the last item, currently being upgraded are three Eagan park facilities: the Eagan Community Center, Eagan Art House, and Goat Hill Park.)  
• Ensure that every resident can access top-notch services and programs — by making sure that the City’s workforce reflects its changing demographics. (“Corporations, nonprofits, and public agencies continue to observe that employees’ diverse backgrounds and perspectives make organizations stronger.”)
• Address climate challenges —by empowering staff to work with the Sustainable Eagan Advisory Commission, community, and experts to create a “climate action plan that outlines steps the City and community can take to make a positive impact.” 

Public safety is vital to both residents and businesses.

No wonder police and fire employees in attendance received a standing ovation. Maguire recognized their everyday hard work, the 60th anniversary of the Eagan Fire Department, and their support of fellow Burnsville teams coping with the loss of three first responders in February.

Did You Know

While January’s unemployment rates for Minnesota and the U.S. respectively were 3.3% and 4.1%, the Eagan rate was just 2.4%, according to MNDEED.

The median tax-assessed value of a property in Eagan (for taxes payable this year) is $409,636.

Briefly

The Hope Breakfast Bar in Eagan donated 100% of a day’s sales to the families of three first responders who were killed in Burnsville in February. “We’re asking our community and everybody to stand with these fallen first responders and their families, and make sure they understand that we love them and we’re so grateful for them,” Chef Brian Ingram told reporter Pauleen Le of CBS News Minnesota. Hope Breakfast Bar is owned by Purpose Restaurants.

People

Before retiring, Eagan city engineer John Gorder was honored for 28 years of service during the March 4 City Council meeting. Aaron Nelson succeeds Gorder, having been promoted after serving as assistant city engineer since 2012.

Minnesota Aurora head coach and sporting director Nicole Lukic has taken a new position as director of talent identification with U.S. Soccer. Named the 2023 “Coach of the Year” for the USL-W League, Lukic led the team to two undefeated regular seasons.

Business

A Florida-based, technology-focused fitness studio chain, Body20, is opening its first Minnesota franchise within the Venstar retail center near Viking Lakes in April.

Johnson Brothers Liquor Distributors has withdrawn its application to redevelop Eagan’s former Blue Cross Blue Shield site.

Kowalski’s Markets closed its 16-year-old Eagan store (1646 Diffley Rd.) in February due to unprofitability; employees were offered jobs at other Kowalski’s locations.

In late April, the Party City store (1279 Promenade Pl.) also plans to close; this follows a Chapter 11 bankruptcy announced in January.

Outdoor apparel manufacturer Storm Creek has long been an advocate for sustainability, but it’s taken a step further by producing clothing from recycled plastic. A recent Star Tribune article reported that the Eagan company has recycled more than 32 million bottles since October 2019.

The Tavern Grill, a full-service restaurant, plans to open its 11th location at Viking Lakes in Eagan this summer. Also this summer, Viking Lakes plans to begin infrastructure construction for its next phase of residential development. In addition, construction of a private outdoor amenity space is nearly complete.

Government

City of Eagan employees gave 2,633 pounds of nonperishable food and $6,750 for the Open Door, a hunger relief nonprofit serving Dakota County residents.