About Richfield Redevelopment

Redevelopment in Richfield has helped the City maintain its charm to existing homeowners while attracting new families. Richfield, a suburb with borders that once included the airport and Lake Calhoun, experienced most of its growth in the 1940s - 1960s. To stay competitive with newer surrounding communities, Richfield has initiated home remodeling programs to revitalize older, traditional neighborhoods and is redeveloping other areas with a mixture of new retail, business, and residential buildings.

Lately, redevelopment projects have focused around the perimeter of the City which is bordered by major interstates and the international airport. The proposed Cedar Corridor will provide the east side of Richfield with needed retailers and businesses while serving as a buffer to protect neighborhoods from the airport’s latest expansion along Cedar Ave.

Richfield’s redevelopment efforts are paying off. Home values are competitive (average is around $200,000 in 2004), there are more jobs (Best Buy’s corporate headquarters alone added 5,000 jobs in 2003), and redeveloped areas have helped the city fill voids in housing lost to recent airport and highway expansion projects.

Why Richfield Redevelops

To attract new investment
Redevelopment attracts new businesses and allows expansion of existing businesses. Redevelopment updates City housing and gives residents the confidence to invest in their homes, schools and city facilities.

To keep residential neighborhoods vital
If business deteriorates, so do the homes next door. Revitalizing aging business property will keep disinvestment out of neighborhoods.

To maintain a stable and growing population
Because of changing household sizes, Richfield’s population shrank 21 percent between 1970 and 1980, then stabilized in the 1990s. Having modern single family homes, more housing and a greater variety of housing is critical to providing students for the schools and residents for the community.

To retain and attract residents
When considering a hometown, residents are looking at housing, schools, a good location, convenient shopping and quality of life issues. Are the houses large enough and modern? Are townhomes available? Are shopping and services available and convenient? Richfield needs to redevelop to provide residents with what they want in a hometown.

To compete with developing suburbs
Just as businesses compete for customers, cities compete for residents. If first-ring suburbs do not provide residents with the types of modern homes, housing choices and retail opportunities they are looking for, developing suburbs will. With no open land, Richfield needs to redevelop to be competitive. This helps assure long term community viability.

Richfield Redevelopment Results

• NEW HOMES – 100 single family homes constructed in Richfield since 1990. The addition of 1,000 new housing units is planned for the next 10 years.

• IMPROVED HOMES – One-tenth of Richfield single family homes have made improvements of $10,000 or more since 1990.

• HIGHER HOME VALUES – Sixty-eight percent of Richfield single family homes are valued at more than $100,000. That’s up from ten percent in 1990.

• NEW BUSINESSES - Shops at Lyndale, AmericInn, Candlewood Hotel, Galyan’s, Minnesota Valley School of Music and Woodlake Clinic.

• BUSINESS EXPANSION AND REMODELING – Lunds, Rainbow, Richfield Transmission, Menards, Richfield Floral and Gardens, Lyndale Hardware and Bruegger’s Bagels.

• TOTAL COMMERCIAL REMODELING – Exceeds $9 million since 1990 and new commercial construction is valued in excess of $110 million.

• SCHOOL INVESTMENT – Community confidence means investment in Richfield schools. In 1993, residents passed a $36.9 million bond referendum for school renovation, remodeling and technology improvements.