The "New Blaine"

Home buyers are continuing to turn to Blaine in record numbers. And, why not? The city offers well-planned neighborhoods, easy access to Minneapolis and St. Paul, and multiple recreational opportunities that appeal to people of all ages and income levels. During 2003 alone, 816 new homes were built in the city, and Blaine's population increased by nearly 5,800.

Although Blaine is the fastest-growing community in the state, city officials take great care in retaining its open space when planning for a pleasing mix of quality housing that attracts a broad range of buyers, from first-time home buyers to executives to empty nesters. Home prices run the gamut from $250,000 to more than $1 million.

One of the newest residential developments in Blaine is The Lakes, a neighborhood near 125th Avenue and Radisson Road that encompasses almost 1,100 acres of land and includes 160 acres of interconnected and navigable waterways. In keeping with Blaine's emphasis on open space, developers have dedicated 36 percent of The Lakes to three parks- including a community park on the north side of the main lake that eventually will have concession facilities for renting boats, canoes, paddle boats, and kayaks, as well as a warming house for winter skating and skiing, and a civic space for community events. The Lakes also has more than 20 miles of walking and biking trails that will connect its neighborhoods with a regional trail.

When completed, The Lakes, which is under development by Emmerich Construction in Andover, will include approximately 3,600 homes, 400 to 500 of which will be located on shoreline property.

"Blaine is a good housing market, and we had the opportunity to assemble this large parcel of land," says John Jackets, project manager and a partner in the construction company. "The property has good access to 35W, it's 15 minutes from downtown Minneapolis or St. Paul, and it's across the street from the TPC [Tournament Players Club] golf course. There is a lot right here in what I call the 'New Blaine.' If you were to drive around the north suburban area looking for privacy, security, and someplace to raise a family, this is it. It's not cookie-cutter. Blaine has mature oak trees, big backyards, privacy, and ponds."

The development's piece de resistance is, not surprisingly, a series of five interconnected man-made lakes. The largest lake is just over 80 acres, Jackets says. The others are 11, 14, 22, and 26 acres. All of the lakes will be connected by four bridges. Only non-combustion watercraft, such as electric boats and pontoons, will be allowed on the water.

Jackets says The Lakes has been in the planning stages for three years. "We're about half finished with the major excavating and have completed a couple of miles of parkway and one bridge," he says. "One lake is finished and two are approximately 90 percent complete. We're using eight builders, each chosen with great care and each building in its own neighborhood."

Jackets calls the community a life-cycle development. He says they hope to have a senior housing campus with independent and assisted-living residences. "We have an area already set aside so if the right senior housing builder comes along it's available," he says.

The Lakes will also include commercial and industrial development in an office park on 34 acres. Eleven acres adjacent to a city park on the north side of the main take will be developed as a neighborhood retail district. Tenants could include a video rental store, a coffee shop, a deli or small grocery, a hair salon, and professional services such as a dentist or an accountant. "You could get in your canoe, paddle to the park, walk a few short steps, get a cup of coffee, and enjoy the park," Jackets says. "We haven't even begun to market this, but I'm already getting calls about it. Right now, we're staying focused on the residential." Approximately 20 homes in The Lakes were occupied by late spring, with another 200 under construction.

Also building at The Lakes is TJB Homes, a Blaine-based construction company that has a large design showroom near the intersection of Highway 10 and Highway 65. "We built our first home in Blaine about 20 years ago," says Tom Budzynski, CEO and owner.

TJB Homes owns 72 lots in The Lakes and has constructed many $1 million homes there. "The first one was a very unique home, and it sold during the first day of the [Spring 2004 Parade of Homes," Budzynski says, adding that they also sold two more like it during the Parade. Budzynski spends a considerable amount of time in Florida looking at architecture, design, and detail. He incorporates some of those elements into the homes his company builds here. "We're bringing in a whole new flavor," he says.

The Lakes, Budzynski points out, has its own unique elements, and he is excited to be building there. "We'll build in The Lakes for about five years," he says. TJB's homes in the development will range in price from $500,000 to $1 million. Budzynski says they have 14 homes under construction; four others have been completed and sold. "Interest in this development is very, very high," he says.

Fun for Everyone

Golf may be king in Blaine, but the city is home to a number of other recreational opportunities as well.

The latest addition to Blaine's recreational roster is the National Youth Golf Center, an impressive golf facility designed specifically for getting youngsters enthused about the game. Located just east of the National Sports Center, the $11 million facility opened in May with nine holes. It will be completed in three to four years.

"We're building 27 holes total," says Neil Ladd, course manager. "The back nine of the 18 holes are now open, and nine more will open in September. We'll also have an 18-hole putting course from 50 to 115 feet. We also have an over-sized driving range for 40 to 50 golfers."

The golf center's mission is to provide affordable access to golfers ages 18 and younger, who pay according to their age-$10 for a 10-year-old, for example - to play 18 holes. "We noticed that there aren't many entry points for kids to get involved in golf, so we created 17 of them-from beginner lessons to leagues to camps to tournaments," the National Youth Golf Center's Ladd says. During the opening weekend, two-thirds of the golfers who played the course were kids and one-third were adults. Each hole has up to six tee boxes, allowing golfers with different skill levels to tee off from the box that best fits their ability.

The National Youth Golf Center is part of the National Sports Center, which encompasses 652 acres of land in Blaine and includes 70 soccer fields, a 200-meter indoor track, a sports hall, and the Schwan Super Rink, which houses four Olympic-size skating rinks and is the largest ice arena of its kind in the nation. A 30,000-square-foot event center is under construction at the north end of the center's stadium and is expected to open next year. It will have meeting rooms and a large assembly hall to accommodate players and coaches who currently gather in tents put up on the grounds.

Other events hosted by the National Sports Center include lacrosse, rugby, football, track and field, cycling, and ultimate disc tournaments.

Not far away, the Tournament Players Club (TPC) of the Twin Cities also has had a tremendous impact on the city of Blaine. Owned and managed by the PGA, the TPC is part of a network of championship golf courses throughout the country. TPC of the Twin Cities opened in June 2000 as the 19th club in the TPC network. It's home to the Champions Tour's 3M Championship, which draws about 150,000 people each August. In 2003, players on the Champions Tour ranked it as the top course on the tour, which included 28 other courses.

Blaine is also home to a number of parks that encompass more than 510 acres of land, hiking and biking trails that run throughout the city, and a huge baseball complex. It certainly is no exaggeration to say that the city has something for everyone in the way of recreation.

Adding a New Dimension

While new homes are sprouting up each year, Blaine is also attracting an impressive number of commercial developments that are adding a new dimension to the city and bringing with them jobs, professional services, and shops and restaurants.

At Highway 65 and 105th Avenue, National Market Center is under construction on 57 acres just west of the National Sports Center. The project will include 400,000 square feet of retail space and currently is home to a 163,000-square-foot Menards that opened in April. Menards soon will be joined by an 89,000-square-foot Kohl's store and a 10,600-square-foot medical clinic. Both are scheduled to open in August. By mid-fall, the center also will be home to First Community Credit Union and a McDonald's MotoMart, which will include a restaurant, a convenience store, and a gas station.

National Market Center, which is being developed by Blaine-based Continental Development Corporation, will consist of several freestanding buildings, including The Shoppes. The Shoppes are two buildings - one with 24,000 square feet and the other with 14,000 square feet-placed at right angles to each other with a plaza between them. Businesses that have opened at The Shoppes include Time Out Sports Bar, Cost Cutters, Nextel, Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches, Figaro's Pizza, Todaze Hair Salon, Caribou Coffee, and Chipotle.

"We also have a signed lease for Cold Stone Creamery and are talking to a national tanning company and a national bakery," says Dick Haluptzok, director of operations for Continental Development. "We tried to design the center so it has a village look to it with friendly architecture."

The city of Blaine - and especially this location in Blaine - appealed to Continental Development for several reasons. "The volume of traffic on Highway 65 rivals that on 35W," Haluptzok says. "It gets 50,000 cars a day. Thousands of housing units are going in, and there is a real hunger here for retail."

Retail is coming to Blaine in a big way. Several other commercial developments are currently in the works. One is Victory Village at the southeast quadrant of Highway 65 and 109th Avenue. This project, which began as a development for a 174,000-square-foot SuperTarget that opened last fall, has grown to include some 375,000 square feet of retail space on a 40-acre site. "This is our first venture in Blaine," says Kevin Brazner, co-owner of the Avalon Group, the Golden Valley real estate development company that owns the project. "We're across from Club West and just down the street from the Tournament Players Club [TPC], which are both experiencing great success. This is a perfect location."

Now almost 50 percent complete, Victory Village currently houses a mix of retail and service businesses that include Wendy's, Hollywood Video, Great Clips, Chili's, Marble Slab Creamery, Hair Color Experts, Tu Nails, Camille's Sidewalk Cafe, and Caffvino. "We still have six to eight more buildings coming in," Brazner says. "TCF Bank is building at the site, and we will have a mix of restaurants, retail, service businesses, and possibly a physicians' building."

Victory Village will be fully developed in two years, says co-owner Barbara Van Aucken. She adds that the project's name was a natural for the location. "With the National Sports Center so near, we played on the spirit of competition," she says.

Minneapolis-based Reliance Development is developing Main Street Marketplace nearby on a five-acre site at Highway 65 and Main Street. "A couple of small retailers were interested in Blaine, and we thought there might be others," says John Trautz, a principal with Reliance. "The city owned the property and was willing to sell it to us as long as plans included a full-service restaurant there."

The folks at Reliance were able to interest a local restaurateur, and the site is now home to Hankering's All Day Grill. The two buildings that are open are Hankering's and a retail center that includes Starbuck's, Blockbuster, and four other tenants. "We have two more lots," Trautz says. "On one we're hopeful we will do a build-to-suit for a bank; we're getting close to signing that deal. The fourth building will be a small retail building."

Reliance is so pleased with the progress of Main Street Marketplace that Trautz says he will look for other projects in the city. "I'm very high on Blaine," he says. "There is good city leadership, which is key. With the TPC, the National Sports Center, and the [Anoka County-Blaine] airport, all of that adds to the quality of the community."

Robert Muir Company, an Edina-based developer and commercial real estate owner, was one of the first commercial developers in Blaine, having built Northtown Mall and Rainbow Village in the early 1970s. Company President Kelly Doran says the widening of Lexington Avenue from two to four lanes and the housing boom have made commercial development in the city an even more attractive venture. "As the northeast portion of the Twin Cities develops, Blaine will be the dominant shopping city in the area," he says.

Robert Muir Company's newest development is The Village, located at I-35W and Lexington Avenue. That project, which was completed in 2002, is anchored by Cub Foods, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, and Michael's. It includes three restaurants - Applebee's, Damon's, and Green Mill - as well as several other eateries and retailers. The setting has a neighborhood feel with sidewalks and fountains.

Bolstering a Strong Business Community

While Blaine is attracting a record number of new businesses, the city is also intent on helping existing companies grow and succeed. To that end, the city recently participated in the University of Minnesota's Business Retention and Expansion Strategies Program.

With the help of some 60 volunteers, the city surveyed 50 of its manufacturers to find out how they can help those businesses meet their goals. "We focused on manufacturing because it is the number one industry in Blaine, and it has been hurt more than any other sector by the economy," says Don Kveton, owner of Village Bank in Blaine and chairman of the city's business retention program. The program is funded by the City of Blaine, Connexus Energy, CenterPoint Energy Minnegasco, and Xcel Energy.

Survey results were analyzed by economists and urban studies experts from the University, and committees were formed to address concerns. "Blaine chose to focus on three programs," says Duane Arens, director of community and economic development for Connexus Energy, which serves the city of Blaine. "Those programs would establish a business liaison for the city, develop a link for businesses on the city's Web site, and connect businesses with training and recruiting resources.

Arens, a certified business retention and expansion consultant, is so supportive of Blaine's efforts that he's serving on the committee that's updating the city's Web site to provide local businesses with information on everything from financing to real estate.

Arne Hendrickson, senior consultant in local government relations for CenterPoint Energy Minnegasco, helped conduct interviews with manufacturers. "Businesses have needs and, if no one knocks on their doors, those needs don't get met. We thought this program sounded like a good idea, and it has been," he says.

While survey results identified additional measures city officials can take to help businesses, manufacturers rated Blaine high in several areas. Seventy-two percent rated Blaine as a good or excellent business location, and 60 percent said they would again choose Blaine as a home for their company. Forty percent, however, said they had problems recruiting precision production workers and employees with specialized skills. Forty-eight percent said they expect to hire more of those types of workers, while 32 percent said some of their current employees will require retraining in the future in order to meet technological changes happening in their industries.

The Business Retention and Expansion Program will continue to ensure that Blaine's business community remains strong and continues to grow. It is yet another indication of the importance city officials place on nurturing a healthy balance between residential and commercial growth.

Access Expanding

Getting to and around Blaine - by land or air - is becoming easier with each passing year. As the city's housing and commercial developments have grown, so has traffic, which has prompted the widening and reconstruction of some of its most travelled roadways.

Lexington Avenue is the focus of Blaine's current transportation efforts. The project, which is expected to be completed by late fall, involves widening the road. "Lexington Avenue is now a two-lane road that we're rebuilding to four lanes," says Kate Garwood, multimodal transportation manager for the Anoka County Highway Department. "When Blaine is completely built out - in about 2030 - about 70,000 cars a day will use that roadway. In the future, it could be six lanes, but we don't like to overbuild."

The county also is planning improvements for Highway 65, which Garwood describes as a top priority, followed closely by Highway 10 and I-35W. "We've got our eyes on all those things," she says. "What do we need to do today to get ready for tomorrow? For Highway 65, we're in the middle of figuring this out. On 35, north of where 35W and 35E meet, we're looking at about 145,000 trips a day in 20 years." How much of that traffic will come through Blaine? "We're trying to figure that out, too," she says.

Highway 10, which intersects Highway 65 in Blaine, is also near the top of the "to do" list for the Anoka County Highway Department. "Highway 10 is the fastest - growing corridor in Minnesota and the fourth fastest - growing corridor in the country," Garwood says. "We're also trying to plan transit alternatives for Blaine."

Those alternatives could include three computer rail lines that one day would run through Blaine on their way to downtown Minneapolis, downtown St. Paul, and Hastings. "These are all things we keep in mind as we look to the future, so we can maximize the options," Garwood says. "Blaine is a hot spot."

Visitors can also reach the city by air. They can fly into the Anoka County - Blaine Airport, one of the state's largest reliever airports. According to the Metropolitan Airport Commission, the Anoka County - Blaine Airport is a busy place, recording 132,144 takeoffs and landings during 2003. That same year, 490 aircraft were based at the facility. The airport, which has two runways, serves the most diverse aircraft mix in the reliever system. It also has a new state-of-the-art air traffic control tower.

"Blaine is one of the most multimodal communities in the area," Garwood says. "It has the airport, a good county road system, two freeways, and an intricate system of county and city trails."