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ARDEN HILLS SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION – NOVEMBER 28, 2016 3 <br /> <br />Councilmember Wicklund recommended the City set a timeframe of five to seven years to <br />ensure action was taken on the Civic property. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holden believed the City should outright own this property and recommended <br />the timeframe be seven to ten years. <br /> <br />Councilmember McClung stated the thought of moving City Hall to the Civic property was <br />growing on him. However, it was his opinion the Council needed a great deal more time to plan <br />the future of this site. <br /> <br />Mayor Grant was pleased the Council was supportive of owning the Civic property outright. He <br />wanted to see something nice on this site. <br /> <br />Councilmember Wicklund believed the Council should only buy the land when it had a plan in <br />place. <br /> <br />Mayor Grant suggested the property be sold back to the City at a pass-through price and if the <br />City decides not to develop the site as a Civic use it could be sold back to the developer. <br /> <br />Ms. Kvilvang questioned what the zoning of this property would be if it were sold back to the <br />developer at some time in the future. <br /> <br />Mr. Lux stated it would be good to have some certainty in place in order to protect the property <br />values of the parcels surrounding the Civic property. <br /> <br />Councilmember McClung suggested the parcel be zoned residential if not used for Civic. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holden commented she would like to see a Community Center on the Civic <br />property noting this would greatly benefit the youth of Arden Hills. <br /> <br />Further discussion ensued regarding the future of the Civic property. <br /> <br />Councilmember McClung explained he was willing to commit to putting a Civic use on this <br />property. <br /> <br />Mayor Grant believed a bridge between old and new Arden Hills might be created by placing a <br />Community Center on TCAAP. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holmes questioned why the City could not receive the Civic property for free. <br /> <br />Mr. Lux discussed the budget for TCAAP land acquisition. He stated that the budget is a fixed <br />$14.5 million that includes the land acquisition and all the improvements to the property. He <br />assumed that the County would be turning over all park land to the City. There is no direct <br />payment being made to the county for that land. He continued that the burden of the park system <br />will be on their shoulders in what they are paying for the land. <br /> <br />Councilmember Holmes again asked if the 1.6 acres could be given to the city for free.