Pawnshop? Council Doesn't Like the Bargain

Hopkins council members had a choice: vision over vacancy.

At the risk of letting a prominent piece of land sit vacant for years to come, council unanimously stuck to its vision Tuesday night and tightened the zoning designation for the former BP property near Blake Road and Highway 7. This blocks out and other types of business that have been most interested in the site.

“This is our opportunity to chip away at an area I’ve heard people refer to as blighted, which I don’t like, which I don’t agree with," said Councilman Rick Brausen.

Council’s decision bucks last week’s unanimous Zoning and Planning recommendation to keep a less-restrictive designation. Members noted the  across the street and  on a nearby corner. Both would be prohibited under the new zoning for the BP site, but those businesses also don’t fit with council’s grand plans for Blake Road east side, where homes and apartments stand in contrast to the business-lined west side.

The council's zoning vote is all the more meaningful because it comes as Blake Road, long considered one of Hopkins' most troubled areas, is at a crossroads. In the past several months, it has benefitted from projects such as  and transforming the land into park space. Councilwoman Cheryl Youakim said Tuesday's vote supports a better quality of life for people who live in that area.

Mark Smith, who  criticized the council for choosing a “hope and a dream” over a real project and that there is “no magic pixie dust” for a site that has proven difficult to redevelop. Smith’s broker predicted the property would sit vacant for at least five years.

Brausen countered by recalling that Hopkins waited a decade, passing on big-box retailers, for what would become the Cargill office park and the 3,000 high-quality jobs that came with it.

The council's long-term vision isn't absolute. In February, cleared the way for , an industrial property neighboring the BP site. The difference in that case, council members said Tuesday, is that the owner had already invested in the property.

Overall, council members appear unified in their intent to remain patient and focus on the long-term.

“Sticking to your vision is what makes things great as time goes along,” Brausen said. “This is, to me, a long-awaited opportunity to improve Blake Road.”