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1 During the boom of the 1990's and early 21"Century,a number of marginal properties within the old Pequot Lakes 2 city limits fell into disrepair. While most homes in these areas were still properly maintained, new housing �. 3 investments were renditions of the suburban-style homes being constructed in rural Sibley Township.They were 4 larger,used more land and were set back in an independent style.As streets were widened in response to this new 5 form of housing,pedestrian connectivity of neighborhoods was reduced. 6 Most homes within the urban areas of Pequot Lakes are now independent of their neighboring dwellings,a pattern 7 that creates patches of both value and blight. Multi-family apartment buildings out-of-scale with the surrounding 8 housing were also built during this period.Redevelopment,except in rare cases,is non-existent or the purview of 9 government, despite the fact that the largest amount of public capital investment in infrastructure serves these 10 properties. 11 What has happened in the urban parts of Pequot Lakes is similar to what has happened in small-town 12 neighborhoods across the country.What our original homes lacked in size and scale,the original builders made up 13 for in design. Building neighborhoods on a human scale enhanced the public realm and ensured that the houses 14 provided value,and retained value,more than the sum of their parts. 15 As the City changed orientation from neighborhood design to a more auto-centric,independent style of living,the 16 City attracted some short-term investment but ultimately lost out to properties outside the City that provided 17 even more independence and greater auto accessibility.The more the City"invested"to increase auto-accessibility 18 in its neighborhoods,the more it encouraged development outside of those neighborhoods.Today investments in 19 housing improvements are random and almost always out of scale or incompatible with adjacent development. 20 Pequot Lakes cannot be successful over the long-term when its lowest value properties border the most expensive 21 infrastructure investments in the city.Right now,these areas do not attract significant private-sector investment. 22 A city with Pequot Lakes' parks, ball fields, public access to a lake, downtown full of vitality,well-located school 23 property, low crime rates, local churches and opportunities for an engaging civic life should not be experiencing 24 stagnation and decline of its urban housing stock.The City is built on a framework of neighborhood design.Trying 25 to adopt a suburban development pattern on a traditional framework has made Pequot Lakes' housing stock less .6 competitive. 27 For the City of Pequot Lakes to improve its housing—which is essential if there is to be any sustained,long-term 28 growth for the area—it needs to restore its neighborhoods.This means returning to a pattern of development that 29 emphasizes sound site design, proper building placement, structure compatibility and the interconnectivity of 30 neighborhoods. DRAFT-November 2010 10 1 P a g e