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I effect" of the downtown, but approvals can be made very quickly. Property owners seeking to make 2 improvements to a property within the Grow Zone may choose e;the ,.t",,.St,Rsda.r to either utilize the Grow 3 Zone standards or stick with the traditional aporo?ch. 4 Highway 371 Corridor 5 6 Add: 7 Business inventory 8 • Analysis of remaining business park capacity 9 • Tax base analysis 10 • Answer question: Did we really make a profit on the industrial park?- 11 CURRENT TRENDS 12 As a neighborhood center, the Pequot Lakes economy is impacted by a number of factors beyond its ability to 13 control or even influence.The most pressing factors,created by the national recession, have changed dramatically 14 in just the last two years. It now appears that, for Pequot Lakes as well as other similar communities across the 15 country,the recent period of rapid growth has come to an end. Although it is not clear what will follow, there are 16 some realities that are starting to emerge as critical to the City's future economic development potential. 17 0 _11.ee2ss te As Cziis pl&R iEi "' o compiled, the Idnited States —_R 18 `^b"t ,r , o 19 b if ' It t ~bi espeEially F I iI 20 + h F F t t b 21 4�!,:e."t°stes e at tl .ei.ej,-�ept recerd k;, 22 Population migration. The current economic downtswurn has manifested itself most clearly in the 23 mortgage market, where home prices have fallen d, due te st>i ter lending FequiFements, fevve° 24 .r t",. ...,.kEt t -&" .—e National reports indicate that one in four mortgage holders 25 owe more on their homes than they_#4--e -are worth,which inevitably stifles the ability for people to 26 sell their and move. For an area like Pequot Lakes that has been reliant on people moving to the 27 area to start new businesses and in growth in the workforce from in-migration, reduced mobility thmi-s 28 presents a changed reality. 29 Aging infrastructure. A tremendous amount of infrastructure has been put into the ground to 30 accommodate and, to some extent, induce growth. Whether or not the resulting tax base justifies the 31 investment,the infrastructure deteriorates and will someday require substantial, expensive maintenance. 32 In the current (and future) economy, it will be necessary to make the highest use of each infrastructure 33 investment the city chooses to maintain. 34 0 Aging population. Elderly households typically have incomes that are more stable and fluctuate less with 35 market conditions, good or bad. A Pequot Lakes population that is slightly older than the state average 36 (which itself is considered disproportionately aging) indicates some built in resistance to policies that 37 involve risk or the potential for tax rate fluctuations. 38 • Less government support. State and federal governments are realizing the same kind of fiscal limitations 39 I as local governments and are questioning priorities for future spending. Assistance for Vocal government 40 has been cut dramatically and future cuts are almost assured. With populations nationwide shifting 111 Page