Development plans in motion for Arden Hills' old ammunition plant site
ARDEN HILLS, Minn. — The City of Arden Hills is partnering with Ramsey County and Alatus LLC to redevelop a portion of the 427-acre former Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant.
"I started with the restoration advisory board in 1996, so about 20 to 30 years I've been waiting," said local resident and agricultural engineer Lyle Salmela.
Salmela has lived here for decades and wants to see this area become Minnesota's first all-electric-powered community.
"It's just unbelievable," said Salmela. "Especially with technology today what we can accomplish."
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Salmela might be a visionary but he's not the decision maker. For years, the area known as "Rice Creek Commons," was locked in a court battle between two parties: The property owner, Ramsey County, and the city of Arden Hills.
The sides are talking again and brought in a developer. They came up with a proposal they unveiled this week at an open house. Ramsey County hopes that the 500 additional housing units in this proposal will help cool down a hot housing market and ultimately lower property taxes.
"If you're trying to raise $100,000 from 10 homes, they're each going to be paying $10,000," explained County Commissioner Nicole Frethem. "If you do it from 100 homes, they're each paying $1,000."
There are still several administrative steps left. Officials hope there can be a full development agreement by the summer. Lyle Salmela knows it could be a year's long wait and he's ready to move in as soon as he can.
