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MMB JUN 14 2008 K zoned. The area to the east and southeast of the Ford dealership is commonly referred to as Hoffman's Comers. This is the main commercial area within the city limits. The Hoffman's Comer's area is served by Highway 61 and County Road E. The pattern of development places the Subject Property squarely between substantial commercial development and three acre minimum, high value, residential development. County Road E is a high volume connector road leading from Interstate 35 to the commercial area of Hoffman's Corners and Highway 61. The land abutting this county road, including the Subject Property, will not remain rural in nature for long. Detachment from Gem Lake and annexation by Vadnais Heights will not change the planned use or the character of the Subject Property but will merely expedite the inevitable development of it. (d) Present transportation network and potential transportation issues, including proposed highway development. Gem Lake and Vadnais Heights are served by the same county road system and state highways. There are no significant issues with regard to transportation that bear on whether the Subject Property is in one jurisdiction or the other. (e) Land use controls and planning presently being utilized in the subject area, including comprehensive plans, policies of the Metropolitan Council; and whether there are inconsistencies between proposed development and existing land use controls. Gem Lake has a Comprehensive Plan developed in 1997. Although it was not consistent with the Regional Blueprint in several respects, the Metropolitan Council allowed the City of Gem Lake to adopt the Comprehensive Plan without amendment. The current zoning ordinances are consistent with the community goal set out in the Comprehensive Plan that Gem Lake wishes to preserve its rural . feel. That goal, however, is one of the concerns of the Metropolitan Council. Maintaining its rural appearance in the face of the intense growth and development surrounding it is at odds with the growth and development management goals of the Metropolitan Council's Blueprint. It is apparent from the very credible testimony of multiple witnesses that vague and subjective ordinances are being used by officials of Gem Lake to discourage any development that does not suit their personal interests and that the practices and policies implementing those ordinances have been at best unpredictable and at worst possibly self-serving and subject to conflicts of interests. At a minimum, Gem Lake has used its current and previous zoning ordinances to fend off development that it deems is inconsistent with the "feel" that it wishes to maintain. While there was some testimony that the zoning ordinances and 14