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Document - Historical information/data - Tom Hedges Eagan Chamber of Commerce on Population Growth - 1/1/1986When you're hot, you're hot and EAGAN is... Rumor has it that Eagan is not only the fastest growing community in the state, but also ranks fourth in the nation. City Administrator Tom Hedges can't testify to the national standing, but he may be willing to swear that Eagan is number one in Minnesota. In the 34 square mile city, everything is going up ... population, major construc- tion, the number of city street miles con- necting one mushrooming area with an- other, and the miles of watermain and sewer line. Hedges modestly admits, "There's a tremendous amount of activity" He is putting it mildly. In 1985, the city issued 1,575 building permits for a total valuation of $185,342,198 in construc- tion. The city took in $684,000 on build- ing permit fees alone. And Eagan may be just getting warmed up. Hedges has it figured that the city will continue its upward spiral for another five years and then begin to set- tle down and fill in. He may be right. So far, in 1986, Eagan is outdoing its fast paced growth of a year ago. For the first quarter, the city is up 100 on building permits and projec- tions are it will issue a total of 2,000 be- fore another new year. "We have had to hire consulting in- spectors," Hedges said, because in spite of the building boom, the city is deter- mined to control the growth and see that construction is well monitored. That is no small task in a town growing on such a large scale and in such haste. Hedges acknowledges some details, like the exact number of new city street miles and the up -to- the - minute water line footage, may slip a bit behind from time to time. "It's hard to keep current." Driving through Eagan makes that statement easy to understand. The city is like opening a surprise package. You never know quite what you'll find, but it will be good. Eagan's growth is planned and orderly but, if you just happen on it, surprisingly unexpected. Right now, in or on the way, some of the city's major projects pop immediately to mind. One of the largest is, of course, the 290,000 square foot sales and marketing facility planned by Sperry and to be lo- cated on Pilot Knob Road south of Tower View Road. Then there is the Town Centre 70 mall, first phase, consisting of 155,000 square feet with Walgreen Drug as an anchor. Opening is expected in early August. Ad- jacent to that is the 57,000 square foot Rainbow Store that will open about the middle of this month. The new Northwest Orient Airlines of- fice is under construction in the northeast quadrant of the city and will be 300,000 square feet. United Parcel Service will complete its 300,000 square foot parcel handling facil- ity by fall. An interesting sidelight to this project is the 35 miles of conveyor belt that required more time to install than was necessary for completion of the structure itself. UPS is located at High- ways 3 and 149. Trammell -Crowe will have a four story office building west of Pilot Knob Road in Eagan Woods. It is scheduled for early summer completion. And, on the other side of Pilot Knob, another Sperry Build- ing is taking shape. The Federal Land Company, featured on INK's first cover, last December, has just recently welcomed its first tenant. On April 1, Blue Cross /Blue Shield moved into the top five floors of the 10 story structure. Wachovia Bank and Trust of Winston Salem, North Carolina, has purchased 300 Eagan acres near Trinity Lone Oak Church. The firm, which ranks 28th in the list of the 300 largest banks in the US, is said to be planning a large corporate headquar- ters at that location. Hedges can go on, calling off names of developments and developers coming or already in Eagan ... Dallas Develop- ment, the Cedar Cliff Shopping Center and a number of smaller office/ warehouse campuses to name a few. And there is room for more. Far from bursting its borders, Eagan has about one half of its land still available for devel- opment. While the possibility of changes always exists, the city's zoning district summary presently shows 10.8 percent of the city earmarked for light industry. That per- centage adds up to 2,319 acres, 63 per- cent of which has been developed. Commercial Shopping Center zoning accounts for .9 percent or 204 acres of which 87 percent is developed. General 10 CITY & COUNTRY, BEST OF BOTH COMMUNITY SERVICES DIRECTORY OF THE City of Eagan, Minnesota Prepared 8 distributed by the EAGAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, a division of business has .4 percent or 88 acres and has developed 59 percent while roadside business is .3 percent for 73 acres and is 9.6 percent built up. Neighborhood business covers 76 acres or .3 percent and is only 21 percent developed while limited business gets a .5 percent share or 120 acres and is 73 percent taken care of. Research and development is at 1.2 percent or 252 acres 100 percent used up and planned development with 19.8 percent or 4,270 acres is 42 percent de- veloped. The possibility for flexibility exists in a number of designations including Eagan's agricultural zoning which has 18.7 or 1,649 acres. While the most dramatic facet of Eagan's growth and the most obvious may be in major business construction, it only stands to reason that housing will keep pace. Hedges said the city has never before received so many inquiries from people seeking living space in Eagan. They ar- rive at city hall daily, Hedges said, to seek information on building, buying and rent- ing. He isn't surprised. Aside from the fact people like to live near work and there's a lot of that in Eagan, the city is convenient to other locations. According to the administrator, Eagan is an equal distance to both St. Paul and Minneapolis and closer to the Metropoli- tan Airport. So, he contends, it is a good place to work and live. One thing, if you don't have time for the answer, don't ask anyone from Eagan, "What's new ?" The re- sponse can go on and on and on.