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f. Other? Again, see the first half of this memo. 6. How is the City going to prevent land use changes around the interchange as council members and planning commission staff changes? This question seems to be based on a number of incorrect assumptions. First, the City is not in the business of "preventing" land use changes. To state otherwise is a misnomer. Second, there is an underlying assumption in the question that somehow the City's approach to this corridor will not withstand future scrutiny, that a future Council will take a different course of action. This seems to be based on the belief that strip highway development, complete with frontage roads and the extension of sewer and water utilities, is somehow the natural order of municipal development. The study group should be clear on what the City of Pequot Lakes has done. The City has analyzed the cost of running utilities to the alternate alignment. Just that expense alone — not even including the cost for frontage roads and further extension of utilities — cannot be justified by any cost/benefit analysis performed. The City's cost for this style of development far exceeds anything the taxpayers of Pequot Lakes can hope to receive back in terms of additional tax revenue. Based on that finding, the City opted not to pay the millions of dollars to extend the utilities to the new alignment and has elected not to proactively "up-zone" properties for more intensive use. To be clear; there is nothing in the City's approach that prohibits development along the new TH 371. The only thing that makes Pequot Lakes different from the other communities along the corridor is that we have chosen not to pass large tax increases onto our residents and business owners — either today or in the future — to subsidize development along the highway. 7. Should the City be planning for qrowth around the new interchange? The City has planned for growth around the new interchange. The development pattern is an extension of the downtown pattern, which is a mere block away. Again, there appears to be an assumption that the City should be planning for highway-oriented development such as a gas station or a fast food stop. Even if the City did not already have existing convenience stores and restaurants that we value, there is little to be gained financially in an approach that would have the City subsidize that style of development in that location. 8. What other plans does the City have for accommodating the bypass? We're not sure what is being asked with this question. 9. If not now, when does the City feel is the appropriate time to plan for these improvements? The City of Pequot Lakes has planned extensively for the rerouting of TH 371. Again, the question seems to be assuming that the City should be planning for a specific style of development. We have studied what other communities along the corridor have done and found it to be financially unproductive for WWW.COMMUNITYGROWTH.COM WWW.STRONGTOWNS.ORG