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Appendix B Focus Group NotesAppendix B: Focus Group Notes � u. 9 our pre , Al SCANDIA Scandia Focus Groups Meeting Notes Junes -22,2017 Youth Focus Grou I Introduction • Members in Attendance: o Julie Greiman, Principal, Scandia Elementary o Students ■ Nine students in grade 6 ■ Three students in grade 5 o Jane Kansier, Bolton & Menk o TJ Hofer, Bolton & Menk • Purpose of focus group o Explain planning and the comprehensive plan. o Ask questions and gather answers from students at the school about their thoughts about the strengths, weaknesses, and needs of Scandia and their thoughts on the city and its future. o Ask the students to define three big ideas about what they would want to see in Scandia, and where in the city they would put it. II Part 1: Overview • Introduction and ice breaker: Draw a picture of your favorite thing in Scandia. • Explanation of planning and the comprehensive plan. o Some students had a notion of what city planning. • Establish what the goals of the day are. o Gathering input from students as they may be the ones affected by the plan in 20 years. III Part 2: Question and Answers • What do you like most about living in Scandia? o Draw a picture responses: ■ Softball, teachers, cows, taco days, lacrosse, ice cream at the Gammelgarden, student ambassadors. o Comfortable and hospitable, not overwhelmed by buildings. o Not like big cities, sense of community. o City could use a few more buildings (buildings was often used as a substitute for business), variety and competition in business. o Low density is good, the space between homes creates makes life comfortable. Youth Focus Group Notes June 5, 2017 Page 2 • What does Scandia have that other places do not? o Hugo is more spread o Smaller businesses out o Cost of living can be o More farmland in cities less than in larger cities o Cities do not have as o Community much land o Less pollution o More things to do in o Big Marine Lake cities o Sense of community, o More lakes volunteer community o More independence o Calm because of house spacing. • When you visit other communities, what have you noticed that makes you say, "We need that in Scandia!"? o Transportation systems. o Shopping malls and strip malls. o Conveniently located bike paths — too far away. o Superstore—Target, Walmart ■ Or something like a general store — Dollar General o More restaurants ■ Mexican restaurants specifically mentioned. ■ 50/50 on fast food o Sidewalks o Sport fields • Where would those things be located in Scandia? o Everywhere — spread out o By the solar farm ■ Solar on top of the buildings. o Higher density areas o Redevelop buildings ■ Keep the gas station. o Definite split between whether shops should be spread out or concentrated. ■ Some favor neighborhood shops. • When you grow up... o Do you want to live in Scandia? ■ Universal no at first. ■ One student said maybe, dependent on there being more stuff. ■ Some wanted even more of a rural feel. • Somewhere they could have a gun range, military aspirations. ■ Most wanted a higher density, by description it seemed somewhere between single family neighborhoods or medium density. Youth Focus Group Notes June 5, 2017 Page 3 ■ Low housing choice in Scandia. o What kind of house would you want to live in? • Smaller house in a neighborhood. ■ Village Center ■ Normal house with a large amount of land. • This was repeated a few times. ■ Mansion ■ Big House ■ More dense area o What kind of amenities (parks, trails, etc.)? ■ More attractions. • Annual fair like what Forest Lake does. ■ Farmer's Market. ■ Road improvement. ■ Dog parks/Community area with pets allowed. ■ Accessible public beach. IV Part 3: Three Big and Cool Ideas • Students were divided into three different groups and told to draw on aerial maps what and where they would like three big and innovative ideas that they thought would be beneficial to the city or that they would like to see in the city. o Group 1: ■ Lakeside Houses or Villas on Big Marine. ■ Library near the school, by the Scandia Store as well as a park nearby. ■ Small mall or shopping complex north of the Village, between 97 and 220th Street North o Group 2: ■ High school, junior high, and library along 97 east of the Village ■ Hotel for transients and visitors, should also have a water park off pf 97 east of Manning ■ Beach area on Big Marine Lake ■ Housing along Oakhill north off of 97 ■ Housing on Oakhill between 97 and St. Croix Trail • Target on Parrish between 97 and Olinda o Group 3: ■ Dog park that is connected to major trails located off of 52 east of Nolan Avenue • Native trail connects from 52 to 230 St N ■ Mall off of 97 north of Newberry Avenue North ■ Food options that are spread around the community. 0 Fast food options like McDonalds, Subway, and Jimmy John Youth Focus Group Notes June 5, 2017 Page 4 ■ Gas station on 97 and 91. ■ Target on 97 between Manning and 91. ■ Beach on Bone Lake ■ Park accessibility in Winds of the Pines �Auipg our preSene . Al SCANDIA Business and Agriculture Focus Grou I Introduction • Members in Attendance: o Christine Maefsky (notes included) 0 11 people in the focus group made up of ■ Business owners ■ Farmers ■ Freelance or self-employed • General interest in Scandia o Jane Kansier, Bolton & Menk o TJ Hofer, Bolton & Menk • Purpose of focus group o Explain planning and the comprehensive plan, set goals for the focus group, and establish ground rules for the focus group. o Ask questions and gather answers from participants about their thoughts about the strengths, weaknesses, and needs of Scandia and their thoughts on the city and its future. o Ask the participants to define three big ideas about what they would want to see in Scandia, and where in the city they would put it. II Part 1: Overview • Introduction and ice breaker: What's your favorite thing about Scandia? o Rural feel, great community, o Country feel, history beautiful city o Peace and quiet o Small town feel o Small residential, open spaces o Feels like home, small town feel o Country feel, rural, the city has potential o Volunteer community, ability o Been home for 30+ years. to express value In the o Grew up in Marine community o Many opportunities in community o Wide open space, Lakes, o "Our Gang" community Volunteers o My home • Explanation of the comprehensive plan. o Questions were asked how the plan functions, the scope of the plan, and how binding the plan is. • Establish what the goals of the day are. o Gather input from business and agriculturally focused members of the city. • Other discussion o How is density defined in the city? ■ 4 units/40 acres defined as the overall average density goal, a target to aim for ■ Question generated: How the city can grow and still retain the agriculture land and feel Business/Agriculture Focus Group Notes June 5, 2017 Page 2 • Requires select areas to be more dense while agricultural land remains open, density goals are an average • Question generated: Should the city be a "Rural Center" in the Village Center and then "Diversified Rural" further out with lower density. o What kind of growth is projected? • Slow growth when compared to surround municipalities (Forest Lake, Hugo, Columbus) III Part 2: Question and Answers What do you see as the key strengths of the City? o Rural o Open space o Passionate people o St/ Croix o Lakes o Potential o Strong tenure in residents which has created a community and history o Lion's Club o Diversity in businesses • What do you see as the City's weaknesses/areas of needed improvement? o Internet is slow and sporadic, debilitating to businesses. See below for further details. o Conflict in community about wanting to remain rural with a small town feel but desiring all the amenities of being in the city or a suburb, no consensus on how to achieve this vision. Rural and growth do not necessarily mesh well, but growth does not have to mean getting bigger. o Lack of affordable housing, where do the people that are making $30,000 per year live? Need more diversity in housing. o Nothing in the city to attract a younger generation/millennials; this is somewhat tied to internet issues. o Aging population: people are going to move on or need other accommodations that Scandia is able to provide, who fills the homes after people need to leave? o Gammelgarden is a strong pull for tourism in the community, but once visitors are done there, they move on to another city. Need something to create retention for visitors: Family orientated restaurant open on evenings, bed and breakfasts (B&B). o Agriculture as an industry is dying in Scandia as it is unaffordable, city needs to be willing to grow in other ways to stay alive. o One participant expressed a desire for no growth. o Find a way to utilize areas that are determined to be undevelopable/wetlands. o City needs to be prepared to spend money on other issues other than roads. Business/Agriculture Focus Group Notes June 5, 2017 Page 3 o Other topics mentioned during this conversation: ■ On solving the internet issues: • Mentions that fiber optic cable needs to be installed; Gunflint Trail has it. • Frontier needs to address the issues that are present and further invest in their infrastructure. • Midcontinent provides T1 level service in the Village; could that be expanded? • Frontier has a plan for improvements that are supposed to happen in 2017. • Frontier continues to have poor customer service, employees of Frontier have told customers that they have the equipment ready but are not acting on the improvements yet. • Having more high- tech businesses, whether large or self- employed, that have a demand for high-speed, high-quality internet will incentives telecommunication companies to invest further in Scandia, those companies/people will not move to Scandia before the internet quality is improved; presents a catch-22. • How does funding come to increase the overall quality of the internet services in Scandia? • Public Utilities Commission can mandate improvements and apply for grants to fund said improvements. • Subsidies ■ Half -earth Biodiversity • City of Scandia is uniquely positioned in that half of the city's land is still undeveloped and natural part of this is due to the agricultural background. • Needs to be an easy way for farmers to transfer land through trusts. • Kinnickinnic River Land Trust (KRLT) referenced. o KRLT is an organization with the goal of preserving the land around the Kinnickinnic River in Wisconsin. The Kinnickinnic runs through northwest Wisconsin through River Falls and feeds into the St. Croix River. ■ Serenbe be was brought up as a potentially model community. The participant noted that while the community was a bit utopian, some of the ideas present in the community could be useful. • Serenbe is a community located to the southwest of Atlanta, Georgia. It is comprised of four different hamlets that are Business/Agriculture Focus Group Notes June 5, 2017 Page 4 located in Palmetto (Chattahoochee Hills is listed on the website as the city, but is not recognized by maps yet). • The community states the following as its values and visions: "At Serenbe we value nature, passion, creativity and community. We believe people can live more fully when connected to the wonder of nature. We value people for who they are, not what they are or what they do. This is a community where people live, work, learn and play in celebration of life's beauty. A place where connections between people, nature and the arts are nourished."' ■ A participant noted compared how Scandia has progressed in the last —100 year compared to other municipalities that were of similar size. • School in Scandia used to be so overpopulated that there were two kids to every desk • Copas was thriving • People were poor, but the community flourished • Agriculture aspect of the community is a remnant of the past • Opportunity that other communities do not have, and it cannot be wasted or Scandia would likely end up like the many struggling communities of southwest Minnesota o Herman, MN — six years between two most recent births • Have to find a way to make the community more appealing and accessible. • In the next 20 years, what do you envision or picture for the Scandia Business and Agricultural Community? o Sustainable Farms ■ Objections were initially raised stating that property taxes were too high for farmers to continue in Scandia. Example were given of having 60— acres in Scandia being taxed at $6,000 and having 350 acres in Carlton County being taxed at $4,000. ■ Further discussion included the idea of co-opt or community farms where smaller lots were leased out or rented, this was seen as potentially viable. ■ Farms that are highly specialized were also agreed to be viable examples include: wine grapes, hops, beekeeping, and organic as well as certain less popular livestock such as goats. 1 http://serenbe.com/about#vision Business/Agriculture Focus Group Notes June 5, 2017 Page 5 • Some stated that while they are a part of this sort of farm or organization already, and there is a need for additional income to be able to continue doing it ■ General consensus that the 80 acres single family farm was going to be unable to continue, and agriculture in Scandia needed to change and be approached differently. • Would you support or what is needed to support small lot development in Scandia? o Some support for small lot development. o Need the right industries to be able to support those that would be interested in moving to Scandia and living in smaller lots. ■ Having a meeting to discuss creative solutions to this was mentioned. o Sewer was brought up as a potential issue as developments with smaller lots are often sewered and sometimes required to be sewered by the Metropolitan Council. ■ Cluster or Open Space developments were mentioned along with community septic tank systems that can be connected to a future sewer system. o Other topics mentioned during this conversation: ■ Increasing efforts to make Scandia a sustainable city. • GreenStep Cities was mentioned. ■ Safe Routes to School was mentioned and asked about. • Participant mentioned that a grant from Safe Routes to School was researched previously and deemed to be too difficult. Full explanation was not given but issues seemed to be related to the low density and spread out nature of Scandia. ■ A desire for more off-road pathways that are or connect to community pathways was expressed. • The fiscal cost of this was brought up and the desire for leadership in the city that is willing to spend funds on this type of program was expressed. • What business will attract tourism or visitors and keep them in Scandia? o Brewery o Bike repair shop ■ Lots of people come out to Scandia to cycle and appealing to this kind of tourism could help Scandia. ■ Facilitating cyclist with availability of water, bike racks, places for a picnic or luncheon, and publicly available restrooms. o Sports and outdoor recreation ■ Hockey game during Vinterfest was mentioned, more like this. ■ Heritage of softball and baseball in Scandia was mentioned. • Increase awareness of community leagues. Business/Agriculture Focus Group Notes June 5, 2017 Page 6 • Historical society in historical garb playing a game at the Gammelgarden. o Where should the new business be located? ■ Big Marine Lake Store area ■ Industrial Park ■ Downtown Scandia • If the Town Center was developed or redeveloped what should be done? o Historic feel, how the Scandia Market & Mercantile looks. ■ Copas area in Marine on St. Croix was mentioned as far as a look was concerned. ■ Mercantile used to be a focal point of the city, but that was when agriculture supported the community o Oakhill Road was a mentioned as an area to be developed. ■ Bed and breakfasts and farm stays. o There need to be accommodations and points of interest to keep those that pass through or come to Scandia interested in the town. o Locally produced and kitschy or souvenir type stores. o An increase in signage to direct visitors to points of interest and to encourage exploring the town. ■ A tourism center and brochure should be developed that includes points of interest and local businesses. ■ Farm tours were mentioned as well as a form of tourism. o New Super America was a large success o Other discussion: ■ Senior Residence across 97 (north of 97) would be a bad idea. The location would be disconnected and not accessible IV Part 3: Three Big and Cool Ideas • Participants were divided into two groups and told to draw on aerial maps what and where they would like three big and innovative ideas that they thought would be beneficial to the city or that they would like to see in the city. o Group 1: ■ Bed and breakfast along 52 in the town center. ■ Signage along 97 and 52 as well as 95 and 52. ■ Signs on Olinda and 97 and Oak Hills and 97. ■ Businesses or hotel near Manning near the solar farm. ■ Brochure and map of things to do in Scandia. ■ Gravel pit on north side of Manning. Tiller promised to develop the site when finished with extraction. Business/Agriculture Focus Group Notes June 5, 2017 Page 7 • Needs to be a discussion about making them act on this promise. o Possibly stop renewing the permit. o Group 2: ■ Public restrooms and water in the warming house • Making the warming house into a visitor's center with concessions and coffee shop. ■ Cafe, coffee shop, or bakery in the Valkommen at the Gammelgarden. ■ Craft brewery with character. ■ Signage and directional signs — "You are here, where you should go". • Detailed landscaping around signs important. ■ Promote Airbnb and VRBO. • Final comments and questions o Preservation group Scandia Heritage Trust. ■ Focused on preservation of farms and land around Scandia. ■ Water Barn. o River Access ■ Public access through easements or agreements should be worked on. ■ Reference again to the Kinnickinnic, recommendation to work this model into the St. Croix. o Comments about new residents not feeling welcome. ■ Partly due to not being able to find information about the community, events happening in the community, and groups in the community. ■ Not feeling or seeing the community/volunteerism vibe. • Recommendation to further utilize the farmer's market for events like community meals. • "Building Community" should be a section in the Comprehensive Plan o The community center has limitations such as equipment and aesthetics that make it unappealing — does not feel like Scandia. ■ School programs in the community center would create a sense of community o Need to actively work on attracting young families to Scandia. �Auipg our preSene . Al SCANDIA Senior (5S+) Focus Grou I Introduction • Members in Attendance: o Christine Maefsky o Seven focus group participants ■ Some longtime residents (20+ years) ■ Some newer residents (—S years) o Jane Kansier, Bolton & Menk o TJ Hofer, Bolton & Menk • Purpose of focus group o Explain planning and the comprehensive plan, set goals for the focus group, and establish ground rules for the focus group. o Ask questions and gather answers from participants about their thoughts about the strengths, weaknesses, and needs of Scandia and their thoughts on the city and its future. II Part 1: Overview • Introduction and ice breaker: What's your favorite thing about Scandia? o Retired o Wild life o Rural o Country living o Attitude of the city o Nature o No development o Quiet o Rural feel o River o People o Nature o Great place to raise o The night sky children • Explanation of the comprehensive plan. • Establish what the goals of the day are. o Gather input from senior (or the "wiser" generation) members of the city. • Other discussion o Question about the role of the steering committee and how they relate to the comprehensive plan. o Question about the time line of the comprehensive plan and how the process flows. III Part 2: Question and Answers • What are the strengths of the Scandia? o The city is still rural. o Live 45 mins away from the metro area. 0 20 minutes from brand name services o The downtown area in Scandia. o Casual atmosphere. 55+ Focus Group Notes June 22, 2017 Page 2 o A kind, calm, understanding feel to the people and city. o Close enough to reach most amenities within 20 minutes. o No traffic compared to the city, which can create a stressful feeling. o The parks, the river, and the general closeness with nature. o Ability to keep animals you would not be able to in the city. o On average, employees of businesses are friendly. o The night sky is unobstructed by buildings and not diluted by light pollution. • What are the weaknesses of Scandia? o Lack of services and utilities, internet is terrible, and some areas do not have access to cable. ■ Frontier — a ticket was submitted for a fix, and a 8 day wait is expected ■ Someone brought up the lack of internet was crippling to businesses o One resident of the River Valley area thought that residents of the River Valley were generally ignored, and lacked some essential services. o There are areas in the city that emergency vehicles would struggle access ■ River Valley was explicitly mentioned o No immediate accessibility to common retail/commercial ■ Generally consensus that there shouldn't be a "big box" store, and a general distaste for more development. o Transportation for seniors is limited or not advertised enough. ■ Metro mobility. • Red Cross. ■ Lion's. o Transportation access can also be problematic when you age, poor roads create more problems o Services that allow for staying in your home when you might not be able to perform all the necessary upkeep. ■ House is big and the kids are gone but this is your home, where do you go? o Fear the Scandia is slowly turning into Woodbury. o The idea that lots are now too small to farm and too big to mow. ■ Frustration was expressed that people are mowing more of their property now, thereby removing some of the "natural" feel of the area. • Turning nature into lawn — "Neatness epidemic." o Super America was a success, what does that mean for downtown? • Osceola offers more amenities. • Restaurants, coffee shops, groceries, etc. ■ The SA brought in outsiders that do not mesh with the community. • One participant said that was exactly what they expected to happen, and they had bad service at the SA. 55+ Focus Group Notes June 22, 2017 Page 3 • Another participant said that some new people had come in and it had gotten better recently. o People are leaving Scandia for things they know. o Businesses underestimate the tastes of residents ■ A farm mentality does not mean a lack of taste and culture ■ Marine General Store has a better grasp on this. o Other discussion: ■ The history of Eden Prairie was mentioned, how it used to be farm land and no one lived there, and now it's a fully incorporated suburb. ■ Forest Lake creating senior housing in old library • What does Scandia need for seniors? o Transportation issues for seniors was raised. ■ Shuttle to Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and airport. • A participant mentioned Uber. ■ Forest Lake has a bus that travels into Minneapolis. • This only operates on certain times • One participant expressed a fondness for this service, as it provided a sense of city energy that was otherwise not present. ■ There are ride shares that operate out of Forest Lake, as well as carpools. • From the groups experience the carpools are largely for work groups. • Some of the ride shares that operated out of Forest Lake used to be subsidized o Housing - I want to stay in my house, but the house is bigger than I need. Where do I go? • Two aspects of future developments are that they incorporate natural elements and are aimed at being accessible for seniors, but also are able to attract a multi -generational tenants. o Feeling that being surrounded by people on of your age group can be regressive for people, and especially harmful for seniors. ■ The Oakhill Cottages • The Cottages were brought up as a good example of senior housing. • The Cottages provide affordable housing while doing a good job to incorporate community with elements like community gardens • There is now a waiting list to get into the Cottages 0 A question was raised asking if Scandia could support a branch library. 55+ Focus Group Notes June 22, 2017 Page 4 ■ Mayor Maefsky noted that the Marine library provides some services to Scandia. o The downtown area of Scandia adds character to the city, but that needs to be expressed more o The city needs more restaurants o The St. Croix River Valley area is part of Scandia, but does not feel like it is part of Scandia. o Other discussion: ■ Trails End • The old Trails End restaurant was brought up multiple times, the first time was in discussion of how it used to be a stopping point for people, and a way for people to know they were in Scandia. • General consensus that there is something needed on the 95 and 97 intersection, and that what is in Scandia needs to be marketed more. ■ Community Gardens • The idea of developing community gardens was raised when discussing the Cottages. • Potential for the areas that are "too big to mow, too small to farm." • Osceola has created Community pollinator gardens. ■ The idea of a consignment shop was raised. • One participant looked into opening a consignment shop in Scandia, but the overhead costs would have been too much. o Renting a location on Olinda and 95 would have been $1100 per month. ■ The Scandia store is stagnant, one participant reporting regularly finding expired goods, and the cost of items can be prohibitive. ■ Need more signage leading to the attractions in Scandia. ■ Find a way to attract Tourism. ■ A potential solution for having "too much house" was recommended in using the excess as a home business, and making a home business less prohibitive in Scandia. • What kind of housing is needed in Scandia for seniors? o Should be aesthetically pleasing, and have good walkability, hopefully to some features. o Snow bird transitional housing. ■ Units that are available for use during the summer months, but can be left vacant for the winter when seasonal residents choose to leave. o Accessory dwelling units. 55+ Focus Group Notes June 22, 2017 Page 5 ■ Potential for types of accessory dwelling units like mother-in-law suites or little houses could be used as housing units for seniors that need less space and less upkeep. o Parmly Senior Housing — provide different levels of service. o Memory Care units. ■ Memory care facilities would need to include space for physically active residents. ■ Participants noted that while a memory care facility in Scandia would be nice because it kept you in your home and close to family, it does not belong in Scandia. • Another participant brought up that being on a well and septic system would severely limit any possibility for a large care facility. o Oakdale Cottages brought up again ■ Affordable housing — income dependent. ■ Participants wanted Scandia residents to be preference for future affordable housing and scale down housing options. o Slight interest expressed in townhouses. ■ Need to ensure that there is adequate window coverage in units to not create a "closed in" feel. o No one is building small houses. ■ Interest in what can be generalized as open space cluster housing development was expressed. o Question was raised about how much land was needed to develop now? Answered that less is needed now than when many of the long term residents moved into Scandia. o Thoughts of seniors have gone from, "Who's going to change my diapers?" to, "I want a vibrant community." o Other discussion: ■ The presence of the Osceola Clinic in downtown Scandia has been well met and well done. ■ A city or private service that offers lawn care, home cleaning services • One participant expressed they would be willing to support a tax increase for this service to be offered ■ Light pollution from other cities was mentioned as a potential issue. You can now see other cities at night. ■ The Nextdoor app was mentioned as a useful resource. ■ A directory for different clubs and groups would be useful for finding others that have similar interest. • Ex: St. Croix Valley Camera Club — participant did not know it existed until recently. 55+ Focus Group Notes June 22, 2017 Page 6 ■ Small entrepreneurial businesses that include some manufacturing. • Example of town outside Duluth. • "Microbrews of manufacturing." • Grand Marais encouraging the folk traditions. ■ More marketing is needed for businesses and attractions. ■ Trails End Art Faire used to create attraction to Scandia, replicate it. ■ Question about police force. • Participants would like to see a dedicated police force in the city or at least make sure that the deal with the Washington County Police is good and fair for the service provided. ■ A participant asked, if you couldn't drive, could you live here? • General consensus of no. Some said they would move to Stillwater • Would create a helpless feeling ■ A directory of services would be useful, especially if internet access continues to be an issue. • Question of if businesses could be allowed within neighborhoods. o Mayor responded that it depends on the zoning of the area. • What businesses are missing in Scandia that would appeal to seniors? o A grocery delivery service. ■ Dick's grocery store in Osceola is nice. Could use a shuttle to Osceola. • Osceola had a champion for their improvements, referenced as "the flower lady." ■ Pizza does not even deliver in Scandia. ■ The Watershed in Osceola has done well and is expanding. Prompted question on how Chico's in Scandia is doing, no answer. • Could the Watershed open a restaurant in Scandia? o The idea of encouraging businesses creates the fear that farms are turning into developments, solar parks, etc. ■ Conservation easements were generally thought to be a good idea. o Home care could be used, something like a personal attendant. o Businesses do not match the character of the town. ■ A Swedish bakery or pie shop would fit well. o Tourism could be a boon for the city, but the current tourism "loop" does not include Scandia, and the city and the businesses in the city need to find a way to break the "loop." ■ Scandia needs to be careful to not trade the charm it has now for more visitors. ■ Utilize on the Gammelgarden 55+ Focus Group Notes June 22, 2017 Page 7 ■ Utilize the river o Lanesboro could be a good model for Scandia. o A tour that takes either visitors, or even residents, to the lesser known parts of Scandia. o Marine has a wine and chocolate shop that has been able to succeed because of online orders. ■ Some participants believe that Scandia is able to provide more services than Marine. o Bed and Breakfast collective. o A place that can provide affordable options for physical activity. ■ Yoga, Tai Chi, Biking, etc. o The southwest part of Scandia, around Hanson's Store and Big Marine Lake, barely even identify as Scandia. o The businesses that are available now do not match the town and do not offer as much as Scandia has. o City should have a community plan o Other discussion: ■ Traffic issue on north 95, blind hills. ■ Wally Srock property would be good for a 55+ cluster. ■ A desire for farming to stick around — farm a different way, community farms. ■ More affordable housing like the Cottages are needed. • Jackson Farms is a good model for housing • Scandia should offer incentives for senior housing ■ Homes are not being passed down due to younger generations not being interested in living in Scandia. ■ A participant noted that in 20 to 25 years it is important that Scandia retain its rural character and what makes it unique, such as the Gammelgarden. Do not become another Eden Prairie or Woodbury. ■ Life can make Scandia hard to live in. ■ The community is willing to help each other and that is valuable. IV Part 3: Long Range Policies • Increasing densities take away the character of the city, increases crime, and global warming. Do not develop more. • Preserve rural atmosphere, provide more affordable housing options. • Protect against noise and light pollution, preserve what is good about the city without being anti -progress. • Pursue opportunities like consignment shops, bed and breakfasts, and accessory living. • Scandia really is a town that should be a township, keep the connection with nature, and pursue the arts. 55+ Focus Group Notes June 22, 2017 Page 8 • Keep Scandia safe, create a directory, and promote arts, non -profits, volunteerism, and transportation. Too big to mow, too small to farm, the city has to address farmers selling. Do not let the city become a golf course.