2010 Year in Review

City of New Hope

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Residents and Business People of New Hope:

Even with the challenging economic times, 2010 was a very positive year for the city of New Hope.Grants were especially important in helping the city to maintain core programs and activities. Th e city of New Hope received more than $2 million in grants in 2010.Maintaining infrastructure is one of the city’s top priorities. Important projects in 2010 included installation of a new, larger water main and transit improvements along Bass Lake Road and reconstruction of Winnetka Avenue from Bass Lake Road to 62nd. Both projects received signifi cant funding from state and federal grants respectively. In addi-tion, New Hope initiated water quality improvement projects at the Northwood wetland and 45th Avenue pond.New Hope began an Emerald Ash Borer program, with help from a state grant, to proac-tively address the spread of the Emerald Ash Borer beetle.Th e city also received a Youth Sports Grant from Hennepin County to help improve the New Hope Athletic Fields complex and a grant from Xcel Energy to help plan for reno-vations at the New Hope Ice Arena.Public safety continues to be a primary focus for the New Hope City Council. Th e city hired two new police offi cers and began planning for a new Community Emergency Response Team program to provide public safety training to neighborhood leaders. An-other grant is helping to get the CERT program off the ground.Planning and economic development activities continued. A new $23 million North Education Center for School District 287 was approved, Ambassador Good Samaritan Nursing Home constructed a $4.6 expansion, and several other businesses made sig-nifi cant improvements to their facilities. Th e city began a community-based process to update its vision for City Center at Winnetka and 42nd avenues. And, several ordinances were modifi ed in 2010 including changes to the city’s temporary sign ordinance, an ordinance revision that requires massage therapists to be licensed, and changes to New Hope’s business subsidy policy.Th e following pages highlight some of the more signifi cant activities the city of New Hope engaged in during 2010, and touches on some of the things the city is looking forward to in 2011.Th anks is extended to the City Council, city commissioners, volunteers, and city staff for making 2010 such a successful year for the city.

Sincerely,

Kirk McDonald New Hope City Manager

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While the number and total value of building permits refl ected the downturn in the economy in 2010, there were a number of signifi cant building projects in New Hope during 2010, including:

Amabassador Good SamaritanAmbassador Good Samaritan health care facil-ity constructed a new wing on the north end of their complex at 8100 Medicine Lake Road in 2010. Th e 15,200 square foot addition houses 21 private rooms for short-term adult patients who require rehabilitation aft er they leave the hospital. Th e $4.6 million project also involved conversion of 21 existing two-bed rooms at the 85-bed facil-ity into private rooms.

Major

Construction Projects

Dignitaries at the groundbreaking for Good Samaritan’s expansion.

Paddock Laboratories Paddock completed a nearly half-million dollar interior remodeling project of its headquarters at 3940 Quebec Avenue. Th is is one of a continuing series of remodeling projects at their facility in recent years.

Plans for Paddock’s new mezzanine.

Th e new north wing at Good Samaritan houses 21 private rooms for short-term adult rehabilitation patients.

Infrastructure and BuildingInfrastructure

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District 287

North Education Center

Robbinsdale Area Schools sold the 9½ acre former Hosterman Middle School site at 5520 Zealand Avenue to Intermediate School District 287 in September 2010. District 287 serves the needs of unique learners from 13 west metro school districts with various physical, cogni-tive, emotional and behavioral challenges. Th e district has leased space in Hosterman for the past 10 years, but needs space that is more suitable to the particular needs of its students.District 287 is in the process of demolishing the old school building and will break ground on a new $23 mil-lion, 157,500 square foot North Education Center on the site in spring 2011. Th e new building will be mod-eled aft er the district’s South Education Center in Richfi eld. It will have four wings, an attrac-tive brick façade with glass, masonry and metal highlights, and smaller classrooms.A portion of the new education center will be three stories in height. In October, the City Council approved text amendments to the City Code and Comprehensive plan that allow public, educational, and religious buildings to be up to 48 feet or three stories in height in a residential zoning district. Previously, the City Code only allowed a maximum building height of 32 feet. Th e Council determined that allowing church-es, schools, and other public buildings to build taller will not negatively impact neighborhoods adjacent to schools, will allow land to be better and more fully uti-lized, and is a more realistic regulation as available land for schools becomes scarcer and more costly.

Infrastructure and Buildinge and Building

44

Major Construction

Projects (Continued)

Cooper High SchoolRobbinsdale Area Schools made about $500,000 worth of interior improvement including installing a new eleva-tor at Cooper High School, 8230 47th Avenue.

Process DisplaysProcess Displays remodeled approximately 5,000 square feet of interior space at 2721 Nevada Avenue N, including offi ces, restrooms, a reception area, and an indoor streetscape of display windows to show off the company’s display fi xtures. Th at project was also valued at about $500,000.

In 2010, the 18th annual Northwest Suburban Remod-eling Fair was held on Saturday, April 3 at the Crystal Community Center. Th e fair is a joint eff ort of the city of New Hope and seven neighboring communities.Th e annual remodeling fair helps to inspire residents and put them in touch with local businesses and other re-sources they’ll need to maintain or make improvements to their home.About 1,600 people attended the 2010 fair, which fea-tured 87 home improvement exhibitors and 15 informa-tive, how-to workshops and representatives from the eight cities’ police, fi re, and building inspections departments.Th e 2011 remodeling fair is scheduled for Saturday, April 2, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Northwest Suburban

Remodeling Fair

Infrastructure and BuildingInfrastructure and BuildingInfrastructure

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New Hope has presented awards since 2006 to home-owners who do an exemplary job of maintaining or improving their residential properties. In 2010, nine properties were nominated and four fami-lies were recognized:✦ Tom Christensen won in the Exterior Renovation cat-

egory for replacing an old shed with a beautiful new workshop.

✦ Robin Majestic and Dan Rudie won in the Interior Renovation category for their impressive kitchen and dining room remodeling project.

✦ Th e Truong family won in the Landscaping category for their impressive deck and landscaping.

✦ And, Joan and Bob Sable won in the Garden category for their extensive and beautiful gardens.

Each RAVE! Award winner receives an engraved paver, has their name inscribed on a plaque at City Hall, and is recognized at a Council meeting.Th ese award-winning properties serve as a real inspira-tion to other homeowners in the community to spruce up their properties and keep the city beautiful.

RAVE! Awards

Christensen workshop

Majestic and Rudie kitchen

Truong landscaping

Sable gardens

Infrastructure and Buildinge and Building

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New Hope reconstructed Winnetka Avenue between Bass Lake Road and 62nd Avenue in 2010.Th e project included reconstruction of the street as well as some curb and sidewalk improvements.Th is city-owned portion of Winnetka was originally identifi ed by New Hope’s Pavement Management Plan for reconstruction in 2006, but was delayed due to a lack of funding. Th e city was able complete the project with the help of a $816,000 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act grant.New Hope also received a low-interest loan of up to $412,000 from the Minnesota Public Facilities Author-ity Drinking Water Revolving Loan Fund to pay for replacement of the water main.Th e loan will be repaid at an interest rate of 1.7 percent over 20 years with revenue from the New Hope Water Fund.

Winnetka Avenue

Reconstruction

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Th e Winnetka Avenue project included replacement of the old ductile iron water main.

Transit improvements along Bass Lake Road included a new bus shelter and energy-saving LED street lights.

Bass Lake Road Water Main

and Transit Improvements

Th e city installed a 16-inch water main along the north side of Bass Lake Road from Winnetka Avenue west to Yukon Avenue to improve fi re safety and facilitate future redevelopment in the area. Th e project also included:✦ Construction of a bus shelter on the south side of Bass

Lake Road at Yukon✦ Th e installation of decorative, pedestrian-scale, high-

effi ciency LED street lights✦ Construction of new sidewalk✦ And, relocation of the entrance to the New Hope

Village Golf Course and reconstruction of the golf course parking lot

Funding for the water main and transit work came from a $340,000 Transit Oriented Development grant from Hennepin County, municipal state aid, street light fund and tax increment fi nancing. Funding for the parking lot reconstruction came for the city’s dedicated Park Infra-structure Fund.

Infrastructure and BuildingInfrastructure and BuildingInfrastructure and Building

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In April 2010, the city began refi ning its vision for New Hope’s City Center – the area near the intersections of Win-netka and 42nd avenues. In addition to reviewing its vision for City Center, the City Center Transit Oriented Devel-opment Study will also investigate design options to improve transit, pedestrian, and bicycle connections within the City Center area and identify potential improvements.Although New Hope has engaged in a couple of previ-ous studies of the City Center area, the City Council believed it was important to reevaluate and redefi ne the city’s vision and approach toward the redevelopment of City Center in light of current market conditions and changes in fi nancial and regulatory tools. It’s important to plan and prepare a long-term vision now, so that the city is ready to build when the time is right.Th e City Council believes strongly that participation and support of the local business community and residents is critical to the successful redevelopment of the City Center area. Th e city held a series of open houses for businesses and residents to share a preliminary vision for City Center and get feedback and support from the com-munity. Th e next steps in the study will be to identify redevelopment priorities and fi nancial tools.Th e study is being funded by a $50,000 Transit Oriented Development grant from Hennepin County.

City Center Transit Oriented Development Study

In January of last year, New Hope joined Active Living Hennepin Communities, a public-private partnership established in 2006 to promote healthy living. New Hope joined 12 cities – including Crystal, Brooklyn Park, Golden Valley and Robbinsdale, and eight other agencies – including Robbinsdale Area Schools and Th ree Rivers Park District, to work together to increase opportuni-ties for active living in our communities through policy change, infrastructure planning, marketing, communica-tions and hosting workshop events.New Hope has been exploring three initiatives as part of its participation in Active Living Hennepin County:Complete Streets Complete Streets is a growing movement which shift s the focus of road construction and reconstruction to a multi-faceted approach that aims to create roads that continue to eff ectively move cars, trucks and emergency vehicles while also focusing on the needs of pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit users. Th e Citizen Advisory Commission has begun work developing a Complete Streets policy tailored to New Hope’s specifi c needs and creating a Complete Streets implementation plan to guide future roadway improve-ments in the city.

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Active Living

Hennepin County

Complete Streets strives to create streets suitable for cyclists, pedes-trians, mass transit and cars.

PlanningPlanning

About 30 community stakeholders – including City Council mem-bers, city commissioners, school board members and local business people – participated in a block exercise in June to brainstorm about redevelopment in the City Center area. Th e exercise was facilitated by a team of planning experts.

PlanningPlanning

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Community GardenIn fall 2010, city staff began working with Gardening Matters, a community gardens consulting group, to explore the potential for creating a community garden in New Hope. A major goal of the community garden will be to engage the community and create a gathering space. A couple of meetings were held with interested residents to discuss the steps for starting up a community garden as well as possible locations for a garden. Th e garden will be located on the grounds of the Emer-gency Foodshelf Network at 54th and Boone.It will have about 20 plots available for individuals and families, plus several community plots where civic groups such as boy or girl scout troops or churches can volunteer hours to grow food that will be donated to the foodshelf.Th e gardens will be run by an independent resident group called “Hope Grows.” Th e city and a $1,500 grant from the Active Living program will help get the gardens started. Hope Grows plans to start taking applications for garden plots in the spring.

Active Living

Hennepin County (Continued)

Highway 169 Noise Wall

In September 2010, the City Council expressed support for the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s plan to construct a section of noise wall in 2011, along the east side of Highway 169 from 36th Avenue north to an area near 42nd Avenue. MnDOT constructed a similar section of noise wall in New Hope in 2003, along the east side of Highway 169 from Medicine Lake Road to 36th Avenue. MnDOT held an open house for property owners and stakeholders abutting the proposed wall in early Septem-ber Th e vast majority of those who attended the meeting were in favor of the noise wall construction project.If the noise wall project moves forward this summer, MnDOT would fund 90 percent of the anticipated $1.2 million project costs. New Hope would fund about $120,000 from an existing construction project fund.

PlanningPlann

Community garden plots (shown in green at left ) along with fl owers and a gather-ing space are planned in fr ont of the Emergency Foodshelf Network building at 8141 54th Avenue N.

Th e section of noise wall being planned along Highway 169 between 36th and 42nd avenues will likely be very similar to this noise wall which was installed in 2003.

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Th e streets in red on the map above are scheduled to be reconstructed – with new roadway surface, curb and gutter. Th e streets in green will be reclaimed – the roadway surface will be replaced and the curb and gutter will be repaired as needed. Th e streets in light blue will have mill and overlay work done – the top 1½ inches of roadway will be ground off and a new driving surface will be installed. Finally, the dashed red streets will only be included in the project if bids are lower than anticipated and suffi cient funds are available.

2011 Infrastructure Project

Th e city engineer began preparing plans and specifi cations in late 2010 for the 2011 Infrastructure project, which will include improvements to most of the streets from Medicine Lake Road north to 29th Avenue, between Flag and Louisiana avenues. Reconstruction of a segment of Nevada Avenue, from Medicine Lake Road north to a cul de sac, will be bid as an alternate part of the project, but will only be constructed if suffi cient funds are available. Th e project will involve improvement of the streets, water main replacement, infl ow and infi ltration improvements to the sanitary sewer system, and minor improvements to the storm sewer system.Th e streets involved in the project were identifi ed for replacement through New Hope’s Pavement Management Program, based on detailed analysis of the pavement’s condition.New Hope does not assess taxable properties for street improvement projects. About $3.1 million of the estimated $4.9 project cost will be funded through the city’s dedi-cated street infrastructure fund. Most of the remaining cost will be paid by the city’s water, storm water and sanitary sewer funds.New Hope advertised for bids on the project in late February, expects to select a con-tractor in mid April, and begin construction in June of this year.

Planningning

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Meadow Lake School

Improvements

In May 2010, the City Council approved an amend-ment to the Conditional Use Permit for Meadow Lake School, 8535 62nd Avenue N, to allow construction of a third parking lot at the school.Th e school planned to reconstruct its two existing park-ing lots on the north and west sides of the school build-ing, and wanted to construct a new parking lot on the south side of the building to accommodate the need for additional staff parking. Th e school proposed to con-struct a retention pond east of the new lot to hold the additional runoff from the new parking lot.Th e city suggested, instead, that the school construct a larger storm water retention pond to accommodate both the runoff from the new parking lot and additional storm water from the west parking lot, which previously drained untreated onto Boone Avenue and into Meadow Lake. Th e city and school agreed to share the cost of the new, larger pond.Th e new water quality pond at Meadow Lake School will help to reduce the nutrient load to Meadow Lake, which has been identifi ed by the state as an “impaired water” due to excess nutrients.

Contamination Cleanup

Grant – 5121 Winnetka Avenue

In fall 2010, the City Council agreed to support a request from Hillcrest Development for a Livable Com-munities Tax Base Revitalization Account Contamina-tion Cleanup Grant from the Metropolitan Council to clean up lead contamination at 5121 Winnetka Avenue. Th e city of New Hope agreed to act as a pass through agent for the grant funds as required by the Met Council.A previous occupant of the warehouse left a signifi cant amount of lead dust contamination in the building related to the manufacture of ceramics. Th e property was proceeding into foreclosure when the redeveloper acquired it for well below market value. Hillcrest Development has an excellent reputation for purchasing and revitalizing distressed commercial prop-erties. Th e fi rm has the experience necessary to deal with the environmental cleanup required and the expertise to market the property to future tenants.In January of 2011, the city was notifi ed that a $443,150 grant had been awarded to assist with the cleanup project.

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PlanningPlanning

Th e new water quality pond south of Meadow Lake School treats the runoff fr om the entire school site before it enters Meadow Lake.

A Metropolitan Council grant will help the new property owner clean up lead dust contamination at 5121 Winnetka Avenue.

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Emerald Ash Borer Plan

In 2009, the fi rst Emerald Ash Borer beetle was found in Minnesota, and forestry experts predicted that its spread throughout the Twin Cities and the state of Minnesota was inevitable. Since fi rst appearing in Michigan in 2002, the Emerald Ash Borer beetle has spread unabated across 15 states and part of Canada.Because New Hope has thousands of public ash trees, it became clear to the City Council that the city could not deal with the budget impact of addressing an Emerald Ash Borer infestation within a period of only a few years. Instead, the City Council began implementing an Emerald Ash Borer Plan in 2010 that will spread out the cost by systematically removing and replacing ash trees along the boulevard and in city parks over the next 10 to 15 years.New Hope budgeted $100,000 in 2010 to begin imple-menting its Emerald Ash Borer Plan and received an ad-ditional $87,300 grant from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture to help carry out the plan. A forestry intern completed a detailed inventory of all of New Hope’s public trees during the summer which involved counting, determining the species, and assess-ing the condition of each of the city’s public trees. And, the City Council temporarily changed the city’s Boulevard Tree Replacement Policy to encourage prop-erty owners to volunteer to have their boulevard ash tree removed. Typically New Hope pays half the cost of remov-ing a boulevard tree. In 2010, the city’s contractor re-moved boulevard ash trees at no cost to property owners.In all, the city’s tree contractor removed 234 boulevard ash trees and planted about 120 replacement trees in 2010. Replacement trees were chosen from an approved tree list. Th e tree list emphasizes a diverse mixture of tree varieties in order to lessen the impact of species-specifi c tree maladies in the future.

Th e tiny Emerald Ash Borer beetle has caused huge problems everywher it has appeared.

Modifi cations to the city’s Boulevard Tree Replacement Policy in 2010 made it easier for property owners to deal with their boulevard ash trees.

EnvironmentEnvironmentEnvironmentEnvironment

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Northwood Wetland

Following a rain event last summer, the water level in Northwood Lake got higher than normal. Excess sediment and vegetation in the wetland at the eastern end of Northwood Lake, just west of Winnetka Avenue, has begun to restrict the fl ow of runoff through the wetland, causing the water level in Northwood Lake to rise and remain high for an extended period. Th e city was concerned that, if the restricted fl ow problem were not resolved, multiple rain events within a few week period could result in property damage and erosion around Northwood Lake.

Th e City Council authorized the preparation of plans and specifi cations to resolve the problem in November and hired a contractor to do the work in December. Th e contractor will excavate the wetland, remove the sediment and restore the wetland channel sometime this winter. New Hope will pay the $82,995 project cost with funds from the city’s storm water fund. Eventually, the city will likely be reimbursed for the cost of the project with funds from the Bassett Creek Watershed Management Com-mission.

45th Avenue Pond

Runoff from about 81 acres of land in New Hope fl ows into the wetland near Winnetka Avenue on the north side of 45th Avenue. Th e dry pond confi guration of the wetland provided virtually no storm water treatment to runoff before it continued downstream to Twin Lake in Crystal. Because Twin Lake has been identifi ed as having impaired wa-ter quality, it was important for New Hope to make improvements to the pond.Th e Council approved plans and specifi cations for improvements to the pond in Sep-tember 2010, and hired a contractor to complete the work. Th e improvement project will create a larger and deeper permanent pool and raise the outlet of the pond so that storm water is held in the pond for an extended period

of time. Th e wetland’s design will greatly increase the amount of suspended solids, phosphorus and other nu-trients that settle out of storm water and are absorbed by the wetland vegetation. Th e contractor began excavation work on the pond in early January 2011.Th e total cost of the pond improvements and wetland mitigation is estimated to be $328,000. Funding for the project will include a $160,000 grant from the Minne-sota Board of Water and Soil Resources, up to $82,500 from the Shingle Creek Watershed Management Com-mission’s Capital Improvement Program, the city’s Storm Water Fund, and possibly some state aid.A second phase of the project, involving storm sewer improvements under 45th Avenue, is planned to be com-pleted as part of a future street improvement project.

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EnvironmentEnvironment

Excess sediment and vegetation in the Northwood wetland channel (in red above) needed to be removed to alleviate high water in Northwood Lake following rain events.

Construction of a permanent pond north of 45th Avenue will reduce the amount of nutrients and suspended solids that continue on to Twin Lake.

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New Hope Business Forum

Th e city continued to coordinate monthly meetings of the New Hope Business Forum in 2010. Th e business forum was formed in spring 2009 to pro-vide local business people with a regular opportunity to network with each other and to help make the city be more responsive to the needs of local business.Th e forum meets from 8 to 9 a.m. on the second Wednesday of each month. During odd-numbered months more formal meetings, oft en with a speaker, are held at New Hope City Hall. In summer 2010, forum meetings scheduled during even-numbered months were changed into informal “Coff ee Break” gatherings at busi-nesses throughout the community.In April 2010, community development staff began producing a monthly business newsletter, “Th e Business Brief .” Th e newsletter strives to keep New Hope busi-nesses informed on the issues, up to date on happenings around town, and provides local business people with a forum for sharing information.

Shop New Hope

Because the city’s fi rst Shop New Hope coupon book in 2009 was quite popular with both local businesses and residents, the city decided to produce a second coupon book in 2010. Th e design of the coupon book was simi-lar to the fi rst book, although the 2010 version expand-ed to 32 pages to provide additional space for coupons and city information. Th e city also decided to mail the book, rather than simply providing copies to participat-ing businesses to place on their counters. Forty New Hope businesses participated in the Shop New Hope 2 coupon book. Th e city mailed 18,700 cou-pon books in early July to residents of New Hope and portions of Crystal, Golden Valley and Brooklyn Park. Th e city picked up about 80 percent of the cost of the $8,000 project, with participating businesses contribu-tion $50 each.Eighty percent of the businesses that participated in the second Shop New Hope book indicated they were either satisfi ed or very satisfi ed with the promotion and would participate again.

BusinessBusiness

Th e business forum provides an opportunity for local business people to get together with each other and city offi cials monthly.

Th e second Shop New Hope coupon book had more coupons and was distributed by mail.

BusinessBusiness

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New Hope Outstanding

Business Award

Th e New Hope City Council continued to recognize lo-cal businesses for their contributions to the community in 2010.Th e City Council accepts nominations for the award each quarter. Special consideration is given to businesses that are active in the community, that have made proper-ty improvements, expanded on-site, or relocated within the city, that do a noteworthy job of maintaining their property, or that are celebrating some sort of company milestone (like 25 years in business). Any local resident, business patron, or business person may nominate a company for the Outstanding Business Award. Award-winning companies receive a plaque, are recognized on New Hope’s website and in city publica-tions, and have their name engraved on a permanent plaque at City Hall.Four New Hope companies were recognized with Out-standing Business awards in 2010:• Sunshine Factory – Winter• Lifetime Fitness – Spring • North Central Builders – Summer• Applebee’s – Fall

Accepting Outstanding Business Award plaques fr om Mayor Kathi Hemken were (top to bottom) Randy Rosengren, owner of Sunshine Factory; Sam Remus, general manager of the New Hope Lifetime Fitness; Frank Wattunen and Larry Kraatz, owners of North Central Builders; and Nate McVey, manager of the New Hope Applebees .

BusinessBusin

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42nd Avenue Banners

Late last fall, the city purchased a new set of banners for the City Center area. Although New Hope has had banners along 42nd Avenue for nearly 15 years, the city decided to try something a little diff erent this time around… ✦ Th e new banners were printed in full-

color and feature photographs for the fi rst time.

✦ Th e photographs of New Hope on the banners were taken by residents, and were selected from entries in the fi rst annual New Hope In Focus photo contest.

✦ Th e theme for the banners is “New Hope – a place for all seasons.” Because the new banners have a year-round theme, the city will leave the banners up year-round. Previously, the city always had two sets of banners which public works crews changed out in the spring and the fall. Staff estimates that leaving the same banners up for two years will save the city more than $2,900 in personnel and mate-rial costs.

Business Subsidy Policy

New Hope has had a business subsidy policy in place since the mid 1990s. Th e purpose of the policy is to serve as a guide for how the city should use Tax Incre-ment Financing, tax abatement, and other business assistance programs to facilitate private development. Th e policy had not been amended or updated since its adoption. In June, staff revised the city’s policy based us-ing a model business subsidy policy from the League of Minnesota Cities as a template. Th e city’s revised policy is clearer and more thorough and complies with current state law.Some of the key changes made to the policy include:✦ Changing the purpose of the policy to create a uni-

form standard for the use of city fi nancial tools✦ Add a list of eligible uses for business assistance✦ Establish specifi c criteria for business assistance proj-

ect approval✦ And, adds a business assistance project evaluation

criteria section

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Th e new banners on 42nd Avenue are uniquely New Hope – with seasonal images of the city taken by local photographers.

Businessness

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Ordinance Changes

Temporary Sign OrdinanceIn January 2010, Th e City Council amended the city’s sign ordinance to allow temporary signs two feet behind the curb and within the sight triangle at intersections. Th e ordinance had previously required temporary signs to be at least 10 feet behind the curb or behind the sidewalk and prohibited them within a triangular area starting 20 feet back from corners.

Solicitor OrdinanceIn June, the Council approved changes to the city code which requires solicitors to register with the city and pay a $50 annual fee before going door-to-door. Th e city continues to prohibit any door-to-door solicitation if a property has a “No Solicitation” sign clearly displayed at the front door of the premises.

Th erapeutic Massage Ordinance And, in July, the Council adopted a revised ordinance that includes detailed regulations for a therapeutic mas-sage business and requires both a massage establishment and massage therapists to be licensed annually in New Hope.

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BusinessBusiness

Th e sign ordinance was amended to reduce the setback required for temporary signs for 10 feet to two feet.

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New Hope Athletic Fields

New Hope received a grant from the fi rst round of the Hennepin County Youth Sports Grant program to help pay for a new irrigation system and other improvements at the New Hope Athletic Field complex at 49th and Flag avenues. Th e complex is heavily used by youth football, a variety of school district programs, and adult soft ball. In addi-tion to the new irrigation system, improvements also in-cluded regrading and drain tile in the infi eld to improve drainage, new blacktop pathways, and a new drinking fountain.Th e $98,000 project cost was funded equally by the city’s Park Improvement Fund and the youth sports grant. Th e county’s grant program is funded by a small portion of the countywide stadium tax, which helped to fi nance the new Twins stadium.Th e city broke ground on the project with the help of Hennepin County Com-missioner Mike Opat, offi cials from the Minnesota Amateur Sports Commission and youth sports representatives, in early August. Improvements are largely com-plete, and the fi elds will be put back into play this spring.

Dog Parks

New Hope used the hockey rink just west of City Hall in Civic Center Park as an off -leash dog park on a trial basis in 2009. Th e dog park was well received and experienced no signifi cant problems so, in January of 2010, the City Council decided to make the trial off -leash dog park at Civic Center Park permanent and establish a second dog park in the hockey rink at Lions Park on a trial basis. From April through November the rinks, which are sur-rounded by boards, are made available to dog owners as an off -leash area for their pets. Th e city provides bags for droppings, waste receptacles and benches. Th e off -leash areas are open during daylight hours only. Pet owners are responsible for controlling and picking up aft er their dogs.In February 2011, the Citizen Advisory Commission recommended making the dog park in Lions Park per-manent and the City Council agreed.

Parks and RecreationParks and RecreationParks and RecreationParks and Recreation

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Ice Arena

Engineering Study

Th e 15-member Ice Arena Engineering Study Committee submitted its fi nal report in August 2010 with recommendations to assist the City Council in defi ning, budgeting and schedul-ing future improvements at the New Hope Ice Arena. Th e study identifi ed 11 high-priority improve-ment needs that involve the ice and mechanical systems as well as the electrical system and building main-tenance at the 40-year-old arena, which is located at 4949 Louisiana Avenue North. Th e study spells out a variety of options for addressing these needs, includes an approximate cost for each option, and estimates the time it would take for energy-related improvements to pay for themselves.Th e study committee consisted of 15 members, includ-ing representatives from local youth hockey, Armstrong and Cooper high schools, the business community, city staff , City Council and commissions guided by a team of consulting engineers and architects with extensive experience in arena projects. Th e majority of the engineering study was funded by a grant from Xcel Energy.In November, the Council retained Stevens Engineers, the lead consultant for the engineering study, to develop a plan to group top priority ice arena improvement needs into a project or series of projects. Th e plan will address the most time sensitive improvements fi rst and will determine appropriate phasing to provide the best value for the city.

i

Parks and Recreation

on Facebook

In March, 2010 the city launched a Facebook page for the New Hope Parks and Recreation Depart-ment as another way to reach and engage people who are interested in the city’s recreation program off erings; particularly those who make frequent use of social media. Several members of recreation staff take turns updating the page on a regular basis. Th e site currently has over 200 fans.

www.facebook.com/newhoperecreation

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Lions Park

Last spring, city staff began planning for an improvement project in Lions Park, which is located at 38th and Oregon avenues. Th e city submitted an application for a Hennepin County Youth Sports Grant to help pay for the project in March. Aft er the city was notifi ed that its grant request had been unsuccessful, it decided to move ahead with a scaled back project at the park.Th e City Council approved a budget of $95,000 to replace the aging play equipment at Lions Park. Originally installed in 1989, the park’s play equip-ment is the oldest in the city’s park system. Th e city solicited proposals from play equipment companies and three vendors presented their plans at a neighborhood meeting in November. Th e Council supported the neighbors’ preferred plan and approved the purchase of new play equipment in December.Other improvements planned for Lions Park later this summer include:✦ A new playground container – or con-

crete edging surrounding the play area ✦ Parking lot seal coating and lighting✦ Trail resurfacing and expansion

Parks and RecreationRecreation

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New Hope In Focus

Photo Contest

New Hope’s fi rst ever photo contest, New Hope In Focus, was a big success! Both the quality of the photographs and the number of entries submitted far exceeded expections.Nineteen New Hope photographers submitted 48 photographs before the deadline on August 31, in-cluding four youth under the age of 18.A panel of four volunteer judges who work in the pho-tography and communications fi elds selected winners in three categories – Nature, People and Places, and Youth Photographer. Local residents chose a People’s Choice winner aft er a month of open voting.Th e winner in each category received a cash prize and was invited to an award presentation at a Council meeting in October.

2010 New Hope In Focus photo contest winners were (clock-wise, fr om top): Fire in the Sky by Jennifer Schmidt - Nature and People’s Choice (tie); Lake at Hidden Valley by Terri Bangasser - People and Places; Adventure by Naomi Chan - Youth Photographer; Winter Wonderland by Kenneth Fromm - People’s Choice (tie)

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New Hope City Day

City Day, which was held on Saturday, July 31, was a great opportunity for residents to have some fun and get a little better idea of what was going on at New Hope City Hall.Th e open house event provided residents with a chance to have an informal chat with members of the New Hope City Council and city staff . Staff members from each city department were available to answer questions and share information about many of the city’s current programs.Activities included heavy equipment from the Public Works Department, tours of the Police Department, tumbling and dance demonstrations, highlights from the outdoor theatre production of Music Man, a police K-9 demo, a fi re truck, and much more.Th e event was planned in collaboration with Public Safety Day at the farmers market, which was occurring at the same time across the street. Th e event was well attended. City Day 2011 is planned for Saturday, July 30.

New Hope Community

Farmers Market

Th e New Hope Community Farmers Market began its second year on June 19. Th e market provides locally grown produce and a variety of other items every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Th e open-air market is located in the north end of the Kmart parking lot at 4300 Xylon Avenue North, across the street from New Hope City Hall.About 50 vendors participate in the farmers market, including fruit, vegetable and fl ower growers from Min-nesota and western Wisconsin and a variety of prepared food vendors, local artists and craft ers. An assortment of community organizations, churches, local businesses and entertainers add to the fun each week. Attendance at the market has been very strong. And, a survey of market visitors indicates that the farmers market is good for the local business community – nearly two-thirds of those attending the market incorporate shop-ping at a New Hope business into their trip to the market.

8 8 noNNAAininnnfofococoeennAsusuisisththpiNew Hope’s Saturday market drew big crowds its second year.

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New Hope Celebrates 40 Years of Outdoor Theatre

For the last 40 years, New Hope has off ered musicals in Civic Center Park. Off Broadway Musical Th eatre, a non-profi t community theatre troupe, has been col-laborating with the New Hope Parks and Recreation Department to present free community musical pro-ductions in the park every summer since 1982 – fi rst at the city’s old “Castle” stage and, beginning in 1986 at the New Hope Outdoor Th eatre.Th e 2010 musical was “Th e Music Man!,” which was performed on three consecutive weekends beginning July 22. Two family-friendly Wednesday shows start-ing at 8 p.m. were added the nine traditional “theatre under the stars” performances scheduled for Th ursday through Saturday evenings beginning at 9 p.m. Most of the performances had overfl ow crowds.To help Celebrate 40 Years, Off Broadway also held a humungous cast party on August 1 for the many folks who have participated in New Hope’s summer musicals over the years. Th e cast party included a private perfor-mance of Th e Music Man!In summer 2011, Off Broadway Musical Th eatre will present “Seussical the Musical” at the New Hope Out-door Th eatre, beginning July 21.

Duk Duk Daze

New Hope annual community celebration, Duk Duk Daze, was held the weekend of July 16 to 18, 2010 with most of the events being held in Northwood Park. Last year’s event featured the return of many popular fa-vorites including a dunk tank, carnival games and rides, Lion’s Bingo, a Kiddie Parade and a variety of fabulous fair food. New activities included a custom motorcycle display, a classic car show, and fi re safety trailers and a MADD car. Other activities included soft ball and tennis

tournaments, live music on Friday and Saturday nights, and fi reworks on Satur-day that were – unfortunately – impacted by a sudden storm. For the fi rst time, festival activities poured out into the street, and Boone Avenue was closed from 36th to 42nd avenues for the weekend.Duk Duk Daze 2011 is scheduled for July 15 to 17. A big change planned for this year is to move the fi reworks display from Saturday night to Friday at dusk.

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National Night Out

On Tuesday August 3, 2010, the city of New Hope participated in the 27th Annual National Night Out celebration and the 2nd annual Night to Unite. A total of 97 registered events (up from 95 in 2009) were held all across New Hope renewing the commitment of resi-dents, the police department, and city staff and offi cials in crime prevention and public safety. Although the weather started off hot and sticky, the night turned out very nice with high turnout reported at gatherings across the city. More than 1,000 pounds of food was collected for the local food shelf, and a truckload of school supplies was delivered to NEAR and to local schools for use by children in need.

Mayor’s New Hope

Community Prayer Breakfast

Th e annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast was held on Wednesday, October 20 at the New Hope Community Gyms. Th e theme of the event was “Th e Golden Rule.” Th e event featured inspirational words by local clergy from a wide variety of faiths and performances by musi-cians from the area, including the Cooper High School Chamber Singers. About 300 people attended.

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Giving Back

to the Community

New Hope City Council members and city staff give quite a lot of their free time and treasure to give back to the community:In February 2010, the city helped promote and many members of city staff and the Council helped pack food for the “New Hope for Haiti” campaign by New Hope’s own Kids Against Hunger nonprofi t. Volunteers pack-aged 1 million high-nutrition meals to benefi t survivors of the earthquake in Haiti.Th e city was well represented at the Shingle Creek Wa-tershed Cleanup in the Northwood Lake area in April, and employees cleaned up Dorothy Mary Park as part of the Adopt-A-Park program.City employees sponsored a year-long food drive as well as special Th anksgiving and December Holiday events that yielded a total of 962 pounds of food and $1,320 for the local food shelf. And, employees held a Teen Gift Exchange in December to contribute to the holiday toy drive sponsored by the New Hope Police Department.

CommunityCommunity

Council and staff participated in many com-munity activities in 2010 including a Teen Gift Exchange (top), New Hope for Haiti (above), and the Shingle Creek Watershed Cleanup (left ).

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New Hope Police Officers

Police offi cers Jared Kuyper and Pheng Xiong were hired in February of 2010 and, following completion of their Field Training Offi cer programs, were sworn in as new offi cers on May 24.As of January 2010, New Hope and East Grand Forks were the only two cities in the state of Minnesota that had a six month probationary period for police offi cers. All other cities have adopted a 12 month probationary period for police offi cer to provide recruits with suffi -cient time to complete essential training and evaluation. Because New Hope has operated under the provisions of the Civil Service merit system since 1960, it had been limited by state statute to a six month probationary period for all employees, including police offi cers. With the assistance of Senator Ann Rest and Represen-tative Sandra Peterson, the state House and Senate ap-proved a change to Section 44 of state statutes to estab-lish a 12 month probationary period for police offi cers under Civil Service rules. Governor Pawlenty signed the legislation into law in March.In early 2011, the city hired two additional police of-fi cers. Two probationary offi cers began fi eld training the end of February.

Community Emergency

Response Team

In November 2010, New Hope received a grant of al-most $16,000 from Minnesota Homeland Security and Emergency Management to work with the City of Crys-tal and West Metro Fire to plan and implement a Com-munity Emergency Response Team (CERT) program.When natural and human-caused disasters strike, the resulting damage can restrict and overwhelm local emergency responders and other community resources. Th e CERT program promotes a partnership between emergency services and the people they serve. Emergency personnel provide 24 hours of training to members of neighborhoods, community organizations and workplac-es in basic response skills. Th ese trained CERT members are then integrated into the emergency response capabil-ity of the community.Staff from the cities of New Hope and Crystal and personnel from West Metro Fire have begun planning the local CERT program. Initial training sessions for community members will likely begin in the second half of 2011.

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Public SafetyPublic Safety

Offi cers Jared Kuyper and Pheng Xiong are sworn in.

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Citizens’ Police Academy

Th e New Hope and Crystal police departments collabo-rated on a six week Citizens’ Police Academy that began in mid-September. Th e program gave 20 residents a behind-the-scenes look at how local law enforcement operates. Topics covered in-cluded patrol tactics, investigations, narcotics, crime scene processing, juvenile crime, dispatching, court procedures, use of force, and more. Most of the instructors for the course were police offi cers from the two departments.Eight people are already on a waiting list for this year’s academy.

Safety Camp

2010 marked the 19th year the city has sponsored Safety Camp. 81 children participated in the three day camp in mid-August, which is designed to teach safety tips on a wide variety of topics to children going into grades 3 to 5. Th e city also sponsored a one day Half-Pint Safety Camp for younger children in Kindergarten and fi rst grade in October. Both camps are put on collaboratively by the Police and Parks and Recreation departments and West Metro Fire-Rescue.

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Kids at Safety Camp in August learned about fi rst aid, the police K-9, bicycle safety, and much more.

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Police Training

Every year, New Hope police offi cers and non-sworn po-lice personnel engage in thousands of hours of training in a wide range of disciplines to refi ne their knowledge and skills including: appropriate use of force, fi rearms skills, hostage negotiations, interview and interrogation techniques, emergency driving, less-lethal weapon train-ing, and much more.In 2010, offi cers also participated in two days of Active Shooter Training at a training facility in Annandale. Th e training, which is conducted over several days, is designed to provide offi cers with the skills they will need if they respond to a call involving an active shooter. Whether the problem is in a school, offi ce or home, offi cers are trained in the latest techniques to ensure the best possible outcome.

Traffic Enforcement Sweeps

Th e New Hope Police Department participated in sev-eral multi-city traffi c enforcement sweeps in 2010. Some of the sweeps focused on getting drunk and impaired drivers off the road while others emphasized enforcing Minnesota’s primary seat belt law.In all, New Hope participated in Safe and Sober enforce-ment eff orts in May and October focusing on seatbelts, in June focusing on motorcycle safety, in July focusing on speed and in October and December focusing on driving under the infl uence. Th e city also participated in 19 Operation Night Cap projects and conducted two DWI enforcement eff orts on its own.Th e events involved scheduled overtime to put addi-tional offi cers on the street who could focus their eff orts specifi cally on traffi c enforcement. Th e traffi c sweeps resulted in 41 arrests for driving under the infl uence (DUI), four arrests for other off enses, and 433 citations or warnings issued for seatbelt, speeding, and other mov-ing violations.Th e traffi c enforcement sweeps conducted in 2010 were funded by about $18,500 in grants from the State of Minnesota Offi ce of Traffi c Safety including a Safe and Sober grant and an Operation Night Cap grant.

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Child Passenger Safety Seats

Th e New Hope Police Department received a child pas-senger safety seat grant from the state of Minnesota to provide car seats to low-income families. Th e city received 20 car seats and 12 booster seats through the grant.While more parents are using child passenger safety seats, at least 90 percent of the safety seats in use in New Hope are installed incorrectly. Th e Police Department held a Safety Seat Clinic in August and continues to take appointments for child safety seat inspections for people who live or work in New Hope.

West Metro

Fire Rescue District

New Hope has shared its fi re service with the city of Crystal since 1998. West Metro Fire Rescue District has about 70 paid-on-call fi refi ghters who respond from three fi re stations to provide emergency response ser-vices to the two cities, including a station at 4251 Xylon Avenue North in New Hope.In 2010, West Metro Fire responded to 1451 total incidents including 191 fi res, 472 rescue/medical , 206 hazardous conditions, and 312 false alarms. Th e depart-ment’s average response time to arrive on the scene of a fi re call was 5.46 minutes.

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Fire Engine Replacement

In April the West Metro board of directors authorized the purchase of four new fi re engines for a total cost of $2.45 million, with the cost to be shared equally by the cities of New Hope and Crystal. Th e new engines will replace equipment that has reached the end of its useful life. Th e engines have been grouped into a single pur-chase to obtain a lower overall price.New Hope issued low interest equipment certifi cates in September that will pay off the new fi re apparatus over the next 10 years.

West Metro Fire-Rescue will put four new fi re engines into service in 2011.

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FinanceFinance

Upgraded Bond Rating

Both major bond rating services, Standard and Poors and Moody’s Investor Services upgraded the city of New Hope’s bond rating in April 2010.Standard and Poors upgraded the city’s bond rating from A1 to AA, just two notches below the highest possible rating. Standard and Poors indicated that it increased New Hope’s bond rating for three key reasons:✦ New Hope’s diverse tax base✦ Th e city’s very strong fi nancial position due to its fund balance reserves✦ New Hope’s overall moderate debt burden

Th e AA rating is an exceptionally strong rating, especially for a moderately small com-munity like New Hope.

Debt Restructuring

At the recommendation of its bond counsel, New Hope issued just under $2.4 mil-lion in general oblicgation bonds in March. Th e 2010 bond revenue was used to pay off bonds originally issued at a much higher interest rate in 1999 and to reimburse the city’s water fund for water system improvements that were made as part of a 2008 street project. Th e city will save nearly $40,000 by refunding the 1999 bonds and reissuing the debt at a lower interest rate. Paying for the 2008 water improvements without initially issu-ing bonds had left the water fund with very low cash reserves. Th at portion of the 2010 bond issuance will replenish the water fund and will be repaid with water revenues over the next several years.In May the city refunded $375,000 in revenue bonds issued in 2000 to build the golf course clubhouse. Th e city paid off the bonds with an internal loan from Economic De-velopment Authority funds at about one-third the interest rate of the 2000 bonds. Th e transaction will reduce the debt service the golf course pays each year by about $8,600. Th ese prudent, strategic fi nancial moves to reduce interest costs will have a signifi cant impact on the city’s bottom line.

Clean Audit and Financial Reporting Award

In June, the City Council accepted the audit report for the 2009 City of New Hope Comprehensive Annual Financial Report from the accounting fi rm of Malloy, Mon-tague, Karnowski, Radosevich, and Co. Th e audit results were very good – a “clean opin-ion with no exceptions.” which is the highest opinion an auditor can give. Th e auditor noted that New Hope made a number of improvements to its internal control systems and accounting procedures in 2009.In April, the city received a Certifi cate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Re-porting from the Government Finance Offi cers Association (GFOA) for its 2008 Com-prehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR). Th e GFOA award is the highest recogni-tion the city can receive in the area of governmental accounting and fi nancial reporting. New Hope’s has also submitted its 2009 fi nancial report for a GFOA award.

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Financial SummaryFinancial Summary

Property Tax and State Aid Revenue

Property Tax Revenue

Market Value HACA Revenue

Local Government Aid Total

2000 $5,811,841 $959,227 $1,185,940 $7,957,008 2001 7,364,787 959,462 1,241,776 9,566,025 2002 8,219,656 - 1,087,075 9,306,731 2003 8,165,829 256,891 650,276 9,072,996 2004 8,429,780 242,642 650,276 9,322,698 2005 8,069,691 233,574 423,067 8,726,332 2006 8,330,410 220,150 582,879 9,133,439 2007 8,402,096 230,208 106,466 8,738,770 2008 8,759,354 150,563 224,789 9,134,706 2009 8,768,965 305,938 423,735 9,498,638 2010 9,092,711 1,021 41,843 9,135,575

Allocation of Property Taxes

2009 AdoptedGross Tax Levy

2010 AdoptedGross Tax Levy

Base LevyGeneral Fund $6,725,848 $6,752,834 Street Infrastructure 1,182,500 1,182,500 Park Infrastructure 296,000 296,000 Bassett Creek Watershed 24,517 22,605 Shingle Creek Watershed 24,050 24,186 Economic Development Authority 85,000 85,000 Special LevyPERA 21,050 0 Market Value Homestead Credit/Local Government Aid Unallotment

0 690,318

Debt Service 410,000 39,268 Net Revenue $8,768,965 $9,092,711

Financial SummaryFinancial Summary

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Property Taxes

Intergovernmental

Licenses and Permits

Charges for Services

Fines and Forfeitures

Recreation Fees

Other

Transfers In

$7,565,436

$279,671

$364,677

$514,510 $210,480

$462,732

$453,250$301,200

2010 General Fund Revenue Sources

General Government

Public Safety

Public Works

Parks and Recreation

Miscellaneous

2010 General Fund Expenditures

$5,931,891

$1,329,315

$318,603

$904,966

$1,667,181

Financial SummaryFinancial

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Financial SummaryFinancial Summary

2009 Actual 2010 Budget 2010 Actual (Unaudited)

RevenueTaxes $6,865,310 $7,565,436 $7,458,759 Intergovernmental 1,298,632 462,732 551,688 Licenses and Permits 226,303 210,480 236,377 Charges for Services 503,524 453,250 499,660 Fines and Forfeitures 236,173 301,200 238,961 Recreation Fees 496,389 514,510 556,667 Other 99,137 364,677 288,788 Transfers In 215,510 279,671 276,967

Total Revenues 9,940,978 10,151,956 10,107,867 Expenditures

General Government 1,113,998 1,329,315 1,310,800 Public Safety 5,922,453 5,931,891 5,782,390 Public Works 740,014 904,966 990,825 Parks and Recreation 1,693,042 1,667,181 1,595,390 Miscellaneous 42,596 318,603 271,101 Other 27,001 0 0

Total Expenditures 9,539,104 10,151,956 9,950,506 Net Revenue $401,874 0 $157,361

General Fund Operations

Financial Summaryl Summary