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Within in the last ten years, region serving facilities have continued to improve and <br />expand in ways that help to shape, and sometimes accelerate development in and <br />around the City of Gem Lake. Examples include the following: <br />• The interstate highway system located in close proximity to Gem Lake has been <br />expanded to accommodate an ever increasing traffic volume. Interstate freeways I- <br />694 and I-35E come together in the area, locating Gem Lake close to a major <br />freeway interchange, with nearby on and off ramps. The two freeways are now part <br />of a huge renovation project, centered near Gem Lake, which is called "unweave the <br />weave." This renovation is design to allow a greater number of drivers to safely use <br />the highways each day. <br />• Two large regional shopping malls now serve the area, Maplewood Mall, located <br />approximately two miles away, and Rosedale Mall in Roseville, located <br />approximately seven miles away. Both malls have extended strip mall facilities <br />surrounding them, making each a regional shopping district for the area. <br />• Several smaller but equally as important retail shopping areas have reached fruition <br />in the area. The include but are not limited to the discount shopping area located <br />at the 35 E and County Road E intersection, which includes a Target, a Wal-Mart <br />and other assorted facilities; and the charming downtown White Bear Shopping <br />area, which has undergone a facelift in the past decade. <br />• The City of Maplewood now plays host to an extended health care zone about five <br />miles to the south of the City of Gem Lake surrounding St. John's Hospital, which <br />includes a large number of doctors' offices and healthcare clinic and facilities. <br />• Metropolitan trunk sewers have been expanded north beyond Gem Lake. This <br />provision of major trunk interceptors has made larger scale development possible in <br />the areas between the Cities of White Bear Lake and Forest Lake. <br />• The City of Vadnais Heights has located its city hall, fire department and several <br />office complexes just to the west of the City of Gem Lake, which has created a city <br />center feeling to the area. This has also led to the building of two nearby hotels at <br />the intersection of County Road E and I-35E. <br />Table 3.2 - Existing and Projected Population, Households, and Employment in Gem <br />Lake <br />Change <br />iiP <br />1 <br />1970 <br />1990 <br />2000 <br />2010 <br />2020 <br />2030 <br />2030 <br />Population 305 <br />216 <br />439 <br />419 <br />497 <br />575 <br />658 <br />56% <br />Households 78 <br />54 <br />140 <br />139 <br />174 <br />210 <br />245 <br />76% <br />Employment — <br />250 <br />320 <br />548 <br />720 <br />840 <br />870 <br />59% <br />Employment/ <br />Population — <br />1.16 <br />0.73 <br />1.31 <br />1.64 <br />1.87 <br />1.78 <br />— <br />Ratio <br />3.0 community development: trends and detriments I page 8 <br />