HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-31-2021 Worksession Packet 6
City of Oak Park Heights Worksession
Date: Tuesday, August 31, 2021
Time: 4:30pm
This meeting will be conducted in person at City Hall Council Chambers AND by video/telephone conference due to
the ongoing COVID-19 health pandemic. The meeting will follow the provisions of Minnesota Statute § 13D.021.
Members of the public may either attend the meeting in person at City Hall in the Council Chambers or may remotely
listen to the meeting as provided in 13D.021, Subd. 3, subject to such person paying for any added cost incurred by
the City as a result of the additional connection. The open meeting can be viewed remotely online at:
https://us02web.zoom.us/i/4786278054 or by calling(312-626-6799)and entering meeting ID 4786278054.
Please contact the City at 651-439-4439 or jpinski(a cityofoakparkheights.com in advance of August 31,2021 if you
have any questions about attendance or access.
1. Call to Order
2. 2022 Budget
3. County Abatement Update
4. Reports from City Intern
a. Property Vacancy Report
b. Sanitation Survey
5. Adjourn
Page 1 of 30
City of Oak Park Heights
14168 Oak Park Blvd. N•Oak Park Heights,MN 55082•Phone(651)439-4439•Fax(651)439-0574
8/27/21
MEMO:
TO: Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Eric Johnson, City Administrator
RE: Worksession— Update for 8/31/2-1 —County Abatement
On January 12, 2021 the City Council directed that Staff monitor the process from Washington
County relative to a tax abatement application related to a possible development generally
related to the SE quadrant of STH 36 and Manning Ave. SEE METEING MINUTES BELOW
As that submission was finally made in early August and discussions are proceeding;providing
an update/check in is warranted with the Council as to what has been stated at the County's
session on 8/24 and pending discussions.
A full copy of the application made is attached as is the County's Power Point presentation.
C. Tax Abatement Regues —Wa_hirzto_i Cour-Tv:Ceunalmernber Runk
reported tl�_s L•a,e1 oc recent Ctn c=Stil]•.ra-er Couucl n-eet-tas=it
ce-.-eloper fcr t e H:=n;�a% 3 6 arc Nlannins A enue area may
Lie approaching'%Vash_i_-cn Coun::about providing tau a�a:ement for the
development.
Councilmember Runk,seconded by Councilmen_;e_Doughe-tc.moved to
authorize staff to monitor if or when an application for tax abatement was
made with Washington,County if the City wanted to make comments at
the Public Hearing.Roll call vote taken.Carried 5-0-
Page 2 of 30
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A
X11
WASHINGTON COUNTY As�, 11'',N 1 1)1VISION
APPLICATION FOR ECONOMIC D1.'� € € (t n l 1'\ I FA ATTATMENT
(NI 5,1 a 6-9.1912-469.1 w115
1 A I Z I I 4'IIt:7I7l' I11 ltiliYl lilII Ill, 1tt'It[[4'�,I
Applicant's Name i.'.:., syt+c? 651-430-9800
py Of Stillwater �.w... _
1 Thomas lufc{'ari}',wMir>'A l[ninislral�rr 651-430-WI
21fa #� wrcl 1k€orwh
tC"id';; :t'r.'v"vi.Stiii'N'Mel,Ili Fl.us
City 55082
Stillwater
114'�,i'['I ili3d11 a,f'I'I�} CtY
l' }1' 'i'I'r. tii t;lrt': �'r, It'rly ma),)W IVjkul lr/ 169.IS O.511j�t.4)
06G202022000. H02v272200K.. 0602970220003, M02�`202U'301
1.4sgaj l):,,L:{iP1wj1 of llj rlh011%
C'ily or Township TAU(county lam on I).)
City of Stillwater $34 Q
Ila�i'i i€7[i�lll ��4 €�i`4111L'wi:
T!1'_� City of £till'qoter is requesting cw rsideration of in t17c total am0i111t Of 5750,000
W:C1'DC"yr c;vur'15 years corrlmenc.r.g in 2027; to :psis: n the financing 0 pclblic iltfr„s1{....tl,rc r1ncc5s-,ry10 50.r':c lie mixed Oise clev.Icipment
0; €lraL) r. 's Inch to l in the s0clthV-est quadrant of t! c City r S!-1 adjacent to t!, fi','.,' _ 31re1 pil7llllil.L in'erch,:rrll4;;developincnk knir,rn
as Cewa! C;m-!rm-s), C,ie to the scope of the 1010N.,-,' ;7r1 ouc's.zed stormwatier treo:fni ll; .}cnd rjf.rt ijk sewer af1Cl
utility linel, rroi-7 their c,lr,ent terminus at CLirvu C'[--S'SZ j1aV,1(%i to We perimeter of tile• C=l:tral C,3i77 noes d ':e!,opn el:t are necessary; arid are
costs not c.ls'car Is3rily l 'I:o by the (1E'vefod;ei- SPe'cifically, the City will inclrr costs of 11'2.C,1U0,Ku0.o extend scv�cr z ni water utility trunk lines
to Re 4;erirn to ;if flrc:,c.:t vs to be d'_'vefcre.. ir'i tke suture; br 50 on financial aiialysis, this portion of the casts recluired for development of
tl`Q s t�' 9e. riot su;,p0r a{, based on ci. rrent I la-k: conditions. SI., ?'.rater ;s nDquesting Goonty tax ehytentcnt on properties described above,
TI-2 value'of Jt7e;,roposed cic'r elupl'lw r' is W.000,000. A site pian of the public srswer and water trunk Wilities is attached.
It..' .. ' i I' , ! I7iii,ill4lll ?t1ft11L . 1'j.-A4It' Yo'r' 1A}}ipl:f7l R�”twl ,Lett
,:unc' Ia. 2'02' 15 Years 207 $750,000
Page 13 of 30 Rev 1IIS
PART
)k M'Vi I I I i 011 I:l 1111' L",[11TU'd I 111;[rwi:1 I I IL,110 11 ul thi., W:kship-I"I I,III I II I I I laxi;l!1 ;111;111 I rip N ell'o i: ;;1.1:11+,
The parr 2ls are i:Eciavaloped property. Basi'd i.,pm,the $40,000,GN ifi estialated value of ci-2velopmcnt 0.!1 I'm sub'
ect
parcels. VVMhiI1(;trZ1 COLMIY'S av, Izahlc-.;wo;�arty tax increase in cc:nty piartiort of taxes paid,eXCILICI :1,J 4isctl :;Sparities,OV('r Ihc tAirrert hags'
C...Cr 15 in excess of th-2 tax abnt'(>�11.cnt request of$750(TO r)ver 15 jea's.
Dcwriplion of public interest served [)i- the proposed abatenient—rilust cheek at least one{,VS. 469.18IJ S?d)d,1(2). Check all that
�ilppl.y :i ikd provide an explanation for cacti :i pplicable public interest.
\ J he Al-li:,d1imt still Inc rcmse Lir prusiti-se ixx wiw,
The tax ahatc%in(ent will assist in increasing the lax base frons its current estimated value of$2.7 million to in estimated$40 million
ov c r'I i c: r cxt five years,a fifteen fold ir[CFLI�.50.
N .1 lip Al;llcilivui %%ill prim me jill)e it 14:ioc.w_ltiliy i'iiiiiir N
-lot rr
(:I. 'ul of Tax Abater,ic-i-_ tis i:`-::kgrOl,md for the project,the City expects the project to bring over 100 jobs to the
cur-irn.m:J'.y T!iis infor fi,.at :,r is provided ns r- DiAL ShOUld non. be a f quir-ed rnOric. of approval ind ongoing reporting.
E:]
LL E; 1 Ix atkatement ikill F olo k lop 4,F raac�n 11fighlCiJ AML
.... -------
III r iii lim icin c n i will prf)%i it c I c i:u%%tm-,c r%L4 c; 1-11 r r n1i n r) rcsi ti ems.
r. I tic nwrcrii riir%%ill fitmmic .`, III c-}idi: ludilic iii(rJ44irurmI-C_
The proposed nlmtcrlcIt -.-)il: i,,ssizz, !,,f nincing PLIbliC infrastructure, spc-6fi-cally City sevier and water utility trunk lines.
El.-Thr-21balemient mi.1-1 pti,i4r in a afaver 50%not syribriiable io nn impi-c%cnicio.
2 Page 14 of 30 Rev 1/15
PART III Opiijil.% Bom-d Abate,merit Ilisfir.v (Alerin
I. '\ I hu priyul k rl"hi'll'111 -Ii7h 1!1" 1.111 7,111ki tile:i1111 C1.11!,p11
Y-eq. ThCt,,y of St,. h-ls land kFsc jurisdiction fol this :]rC',] -I Id 1+1,3 I'Llf-J LJSis consistent wir I i updated I and use
Thn :,,ropDscd tlsL(jc= Fic. co:Mkl,vil'.1-1 2-'I�of Vic- i,-w-s r,3.(!ulated by Wahngtl).-1 CO:';i i t V .%r ol h c. -.
r,-s c-noted in the 2040
'YhelS^1 C 0 L rl ty C C, ro 1-:e r,s i F 1.3 11 1-,r a I P r r.1: P,i Witr r,-;,i 6 u f for s, W i I d and Sc0-1�"c C rj d01, S I i c r c.I a r i d P.a.nnagernent, Floodplain,
C0:rick Cr:,,iral Arco of fV 1iv t Rcg*t-3r c� His.c�ic
".,04G'Aashi;1ozon Cminty Comprchensi,4` Rmi'5 Trinnsportat'on Chapter idenl.ifics I-w-58- Street vonnection as a Future system
C'OF&PUity Proie--?, to i:11f rovr Nor!;'i.37A.-I of Uanning Ayenue(CSAH 15) Fuil I-erilmrc. '-'-'ashiflgton County is in the process of
P Inning 'or ihi5 c:;nf,.ecticvi :h K20 wind discussions 1.-w Cc., 1t(30 !(! in 2021.
Ilse Vr(1jC(,1 h:k%
Extc--,-sior, o" th; sc-.-eer and Water u*.iWi tr.ink Lq ro thu5e parcels will provid , rconr,,qi;L: -k-,volopmerit opportunities for increasing tho tax
baso Ind crc-atir,q jobs in the future that 'gill Wonaf 11 thL region- The,proposed mixed :patent at the SE quadrant of R.-dy 3C and
telt-i-i, ;g Avenuc will add up to$40 million in value to the tax base and the property al the NE-2,LM-Arnn! of Hwy 36& Polanniq AVCMIC- is
proposed to be developed as a reg;ornl hosqAaMealth care campus and mixed use development
imiciprily Rml-14chool Di-siriel rpi i-liuipalicon in riN AtIMU11100 on the prujva-
X All,I;,. Wh6li JIM'.11111" $3,144,636 over 15 years
1k 11.1t I Not Applicab I e
Any WIR7 MXill 1!41i,i rict pas ucjptl i i3l rtiindlin;',
4.LJ I ILC human%eir%iceA,anchor alher hudgerAry iii-OOLL
t R.Tovpdee for r I I F1%i kJTiV1k1 ed dc veiripiril c n I fl I i i i ig i r.i usi i uij r riiqli)r�-
i r r.r I .i i n-:-:i I r r-i%r i I 10-:W 4.;L 1141 if Il I V [1171 Ij 0 C i i, oi i cvrctl %i I u 11 r i ik vorn plexim err"pray er ui--
Trie pro,-aUt F,Dpcses t,--. 'ovidc- 1pl)rcY;,11qtQly -%DC nrwk,,�t r;I.c-!-Ousing units.
-LO-1 lie 111.45itcT couir iF,i.ic,i reimomic dvvclopwri 1 1,-% pi-1k ilhn�rniphi%111"ni 11111!111 1,;;;ilii*1*,1 h hoik,1:1% ;L;111 kNzlges.
Page 15 of30,,
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Page 16 of 30
City of Oak Park Heights
14168 Oak Park Blvd. N•Oak Park Heights,MN 55082•Phone(651)439-4439•Fax(651)439-0574
Date:July 21, 2021
To: Eric Johnson
From: Katie Danielzuk
RE: Property Vacancy Report
Project Goals
As a part of my internship this summer at Oak Park Heights, I was to complete three projects that would
provide me with experience in city administration and also benefit the city with the data that I provided.
This project, a report on the commercial vacancy rates in Oak Park Heights, had the following
requirements and goals:
• The creation of a databases/table that would identify all multi-tenant commercial sites and
characteristics of such sites. These would include the owner, tenants, square feet, total space
size, vacancy size, and parcel number.
• Calculate a retail vacancy percentage of Oak Park Heights and compare with surrounding
communities (if applicable).
• Interview local real estate brokers and site managers for buildings with vacancies and inquire as
to their status, reasons for extended vacancy, and future plans.
Following these guidelines, I put together this report/database of commercial properties. Down below is
some background information, methodology used on this project and findings, interviews with real
estate brokers, appendix of properties, and comparable data.
Commercial Property Vacancy Report
After having researched the multi-tenant commercial properties of Oak Park Heights, I was able gather
some data on what these vacancies mean for the city, as well as how they affect general trends. In
addition to going into the field and doing my own research, I interviewed a handful of real estate
brokers to get their take on why there are vacant properties, and potential consequences of that.
Page 17 of 30
Cities tend to use vacancy percentages as guidelines for how they are doing economically, and what
those retail trends indicate. For example, a vacancy rate of around 4-7%1 is average, and once
percentages start hitting 8 or above, that can be perceived as negative trends. Questions that may arise
could be:why are so many units sitting empty?Are people moving out of the city? How is the city's
economy compared to surrounding areas?Those are the types of inferences that can be taken from
higher vacancy percentages. Neighboring cities to Oak Park Heights (Lake Elmo, Stillwater, Oakdale,
Maplewood) didn't have any data on what their vacancy rates looked like, so the vacancy information in
OPH could end up being a good tool for the surrounding areas.
After the data collection for this project was largely completed, Charlie Hexum of CBRE Brokerage
Services reached out to us and gave some of his team's own findings into the Oak Park Heights and
Stillwater area's vacancies. This data will be presented towards the end of the report.
Methodology and Findings
Using a map that contained parcel numbers for vacant multi-tenant properties, I was able to locate each
multi-tenant unit on a GIS map from Washington County. From there, I searched for a few different
pieces of information: the parcel number, building site, owner,total gross size, number of units,
estimated vacancy size, and vacancy percentage of that building. Additionally, I took photos of the listed
buildings and put them into a separate document. Here is the data table:
#0502920210033 5805 Krueger Ln Oak Park Heights Val LLC 87,433 1 0 0% Kohl's addition
#0502920210039 5815,5855 Krueger Ln Oak P ark Heights Val LLC 76,000 2 19,528 26% Units attatched to Kohl's
#0602920110011 5803 Neal Ave Oak Park Ponds LLC 90;000 1 9,000 10% Unit next to Kowalski's
#06 029 20 240 006 Memorial Ave Stillwater West LLC 34,100 1 6500 19%
#0602920110019 5980 Neal Ave South Oak Park Heights Farad Center 11,775 3 5,500 47% Units in Starbucks building
11[1502920220020 5795 Minnesota Ave N Krueger Lane LLC 6,500 1 0 0% Attatched to Credit Union
#0502920220019 13189,13173 Krueger Lu Krueger Lane LLC 6,850 2 0 0% Potbelly Building
#0502920210035 1331560th Street N oak Park Heights Val LLC 7,9u' 11 D% Chipotle building
#0502920210036 1333160th Street N Oak Park Heights Val LLC 7,030 1 1,300 18% Former Kay Jewelers
#0502920120046 5951 Norwich Ave OPC Properties LLC 10,400 1 2,200 21%
#0502920120095 5907 Norich Ave OPC Properties LLC 13,000 1 10% M u day Cow building
#0502920110137 13999 60th Street N Hall&Hall Properties LLC 9,100 1 0 0% Hall Chiropractic
#0402920210007 14375 50th Street N Isaacson Children's Prop Cc 11,500 1 7,774 68%
#0402920210081 59980maha Ave 5999Imaho LLC 6,100 1 1,800 30%
MW 02920120003 59D10mahs Ave Henry Michael 3,700 1 1,500 41% NearAndersen
#0402920120025 NOsgood Ave Stillwater Crossing LLC 15,035 1 2,100 14% Ncxtto Carbone's
MW 02920120024 NOsgood Ave Stillwater Crossing LLC 15,035 1 2,90D 19% Nextto Carbone's
Totals: 411,358 21 60102 15%
Averages: 3535.411765 18%
Looking at this table, the data is telling us a couple of things. The average vacancy rate in these multi-
tenant buildings is 18%.Total availability based on total square feet is 15%. Anecdotal evidence to
support this would be driving around town and seeing about one unit in each property be vacant. There
is an estimated total of 60,102 vacant square feet of commercial square feet with an average unit size of
3565.4 square feet. In this list of parcels, there are 11 buildings that have vacancies, and 6 that do not.
Vacancy Table.xlsx
https://www.rent@ Ipropertyreporter.com/what-is-a-vaca ncy-rate-why-you-shou ld-ca re-a nd-how-it-ca n-save-you-money/
Page 18 of 30
Interviews
After interviewing Kevin LaCasse of Upland Real Estate, Eric Bjelland of Midwest Retail Ventures, and
Charlie Hexum of CRBE Broker Services, I was able to get answers to a couple of questions that I had
throughout the process of understanding commercial property vacancies. Here are their answers to the
following questions:
How do lease/rent prices in Oak Park Heights compare to surrounding suburbs/metro area?
Kevin LaCasse: "I would describe them as very comparable to the surrounding areas. Nothing too much
higher or lower. If it were more similar to a city such as Edina, then there would be some differences.
We see prices starting around $12.00 a square foot, and usually go up to around $18.00-20.00."
Eric Bjelland: "Generally, in oak Park Heights, rents are lower. This has to do with the demographic
density and the current market. Oak Park Heights is a "bedroom" community that is also seeing retailers
head to other communities like Woodbury. Instead of having certain retailers in every town,those
stores are now more in regional locations."
Charlie Hexum: "While a solid market, when new retailers are evaluating a Twin Cities rollout, this sub-
market is not typically considered a 'tier 1' suburb (top 5-6 market in the Twin Cities). It usually would
fall into the bottom part of'tier 2'/top part of'tier 3'within a market rollout. Eventually most groups
would want a location here but takes more time for them to come to that decision.
On new construction/developments, I'd say it's strong and on par with 'average', but not quite as
demanding as you'd see in a trade area such as Roseville, Woodbury, Eagan (for east side markets) or a
Maple Grove, Edina for other pockets of the in the TC that are in that'Tier 1' higher part of'Tier 2'
markets. A good example would be the following... let's say a National Bank(they tend to be on the
higher side of rent paying tenants)who is not in this trade area yet was looking to come into the
market...If they'd pay$185k-215k annually in year 1 on a Ground Lease in a Tier 1 market (i.e.,
Woodbury/Maple Grove etc.),they'd likely MAX out at$150k annually in year 1 in OPH/Stillwater type
market but it very well could be even lower, $100k- $135k annually in year 1. If a drive thru endcap in
one of the tier 1 markets can get$40.00-45.00/sf Net, OPH Stillwater would likely be more in the$35.00
- $40.00/sf range."
What type of lease is the most common for buildings/units such as the ones mentioned-single,
double, or triple net leases?What is your preference as a landlord?
Kevin LaCasse: "The most common is definitely triple-net leases. Sometimes gross leases are preferable
for short-term situations."
Erik Bjelland: "Triple-net leases are the most common.They cover everything listed in the lease."
Charlie Hexum: "In retail, NNN leases are the most common. Strong majority of Landlord's prefer NNN
vs Gross Lease structures."
Page 19 of 30
In your experience,what's the most common reason for property vacancies aside from/before COVID-
19?
Kevin LaCasse: "The most common thing that I have seen and experienced would be that there are just
some mom & pop shops that have had to close over the years. Otherwise, sometimes there are
corporate stores that get developed but they just aren't profitable [such as Starbucks,for example]."
Eric Bjelland: "There are three factors that I think contribute to these vacancies.The first is the
consolidation of retailers to places like Woodbury. Another reason is that there is a large retirement
demographic present in Oak Park Heights.Third is a lifestyle shift- more of these maturing/older brands
are either being sold by their senior owners, or being based down to their kids.There's a "life's too
short" mentality here, and those people want to live the rest of their lives without worrying about
business."
Charlie Hexum: "In my opinion and specific to this market, it is a matter of convincing Tenants they
should have a location in these types of markets (for those who are not yet here).
OPH/Stillwater have the majority of users already in the market who are active currently in both the box
realm and smaller tenant realm.
The ones that are not yet (i.e. Raising Cane's, CFA, Chase, Bank of America etc.)fall into this category but
have deemed other trade areas as a higher priority to solve first in their rollout.
On a more macro level, Minnesota remains a strong retail trade are as a whole but we don't get a ton of
new box users coming into the markets and the ones who are missing and are looking will clamor to the
Tier 1 suburbs first. A good example of this is Bob's Discount Furniture (40,000 sf)—They came into our
market last year as a new box tenant and did two locations, one in Maple Grove and the other in
Woodbury. Majority of other box deals we're doing are relocations from an inferior site/market into one
of the Tier 1 suburbs."
The different brokers/agents that I spoke with all have similar views on these questions. The general
consensus is that Oak Park Heights has a very average rent/lease rate; if anything, rent may fall on the
lower end of the spectrum.This is due to having more generic retailers present, and not having huge
discrepancies in resident income. Secondly, the most common type of leases for these properties would
be a triple-net lease. These types of leases, as explained in the above responses, have the tenant pay for
all expenses including rent, any maintenance costs, taxes, and utilities.This ensures that landlords make
profit from their properties. Finally,there are also agreed upon reasons for property vacancies. Outside
of COVID-19, these vacancies seem to stem from brands maturing and their owners retiring,
consolidation of retailers, and the limited expansion opportunities for chain retailers.
Word Document/Appendix of Properties
Attached is a word document that shows additional information about the vacant properties, as well as
photographs of what the buildings look like. This type of resource is helpful to aid visualization for the
types of properties that are vacant.
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Comparables
Prior to our interview, Charlie Hexum sent out an email full of data regarding vacancies in Oak Park
Heights and Stillwater. This has been helpful to compare my own research and findings to, and paints a
pretty descriptive picture for trends in this area. The summary of findings is as follows.
• There is a total of 2,930,703 square feet of retail inventory within Oak Park Heights and
Stillwater.
• 76,975 square feet of that 2,930,703 retail inventory is vacant-this leads to a 2.6%vacancy rate.
• 123,703 square feet are currently available-this leads to a 4.2%availability rate.
• Attached is the excel table that displays all of CBRE's supplemental data.
• The trends that this data shows us is that most businesses that are in OPH are doing relatively
well-they're able to pay their lease and make some sort of profit. If the number were higher,
we'd know that businesses would not be as successful, and begin to investigate the reasons
behind that.
Conclusion
As a general statement my individual research and data shows that OPH has a vacancy rate that
rates lust a little on the higher side of the scale, at 15%. If we were to remove the outlier percentages,
the vacancy percent would be 8%. The data from CBRE details that between Oak Park Heights and
Stillwater,the vacancy rate hovers just around 3%. Even though it's not a direct reflection on Oak Park
Height's vacancy rate alone, it paints a picture for the surrounding area.
In addition, the majority of the stand-alone buildings that are sitting vacant right now in OPH are former
fast-food establishments—such as Ruby Tuesday, KFC, White Castle. While COVID-19 was certainly a
factor for which businesses were able to survive,there were still other retail trends that played a part in
businesses being able to maintain their retail presence—generally discussed above.
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City of Oak Park Heights
14168 Oak Park Blvd. N•Oak Park Heights,MN 55082•Phone(651)439-4439•Fax(651)439-0574
Date:July 28 2021
To: Eric Johnson
From: Katie Danielzuk
RE: Sanitation Survey Findings
Project Goals
As a part of my internship this summer at Oak Park Heights, I was to complete certain projects that
would provide me with experience in city administration and also benefit the city with the data that I
provided.This project, a report on the city-provided sanitation services, had the goal of researching the
surrounding area's rates for services, and conducting a survey to send out to residents to gather their
direct feedback. The following satisfaction survey and report are detailed below.
Sanitation Survey Report- Background
This memo details the citizens of Oak Park Height's satisfaction with current sanitation services.
Throughout June, I was able to put together a sample survey that asked residents to rank their level of
satisfaction with certain aspects of sanitation. Using the data from their responses, the City of Oak Park
Heights can more accurately gauge the satisfaction residents have with the sanitation services being
offered- and what things residents may want from these services in the future.
The following questions were asked in the survey, of which was available either in paper copy format or
online via Google forms:
1. What is your current level of satisfaction with overall maintenance of city streets, sidewalks, and
other infrastructure?
2. How would you rank your current level of satisfaction with garbage services?
3. How would you rank your current level of satisfaction with recycling services?
4. How satisfied are you with the collection day being on Thursday each week for garbage and
every other week for recycling?
5. Have you participated in any of the City's semi-annual clean-up days?
6. If so, how satisfied were you with the process?
7. If you have contacted us in the past year to schedule pick-up of large items or appliances, how
satisfied were you with the service?
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The survey also asked residents to state the number of people in their household, the number of years
that they have lived in Oak Park Heights, and whether they own or rent their place of residence. With
this information, I was able to configure the average household size that lives in Oak Park Heights, as
well as the average number of years households have been in OPH. Below is a copy of the survey that
was sent out, along with the total number of survey responses.
What is your current level of satisfaction
with overall maintenance of city streets,
sidewalks.and other infrastructure? 10 5 0 3 0 0
How would you rank your current level of
satisfaction with garbage services? 42 2 0 1 0 0
How would you rank your current level of
satisfaction with recycling services? 35 6 1 0 2 1
How satisfied are you with the collection
day being on Thursday each week for
garbage and every other week for
recycling? 35 2 1 5 2 0
Have you participated in any of the City's
semi-annual clean-up days? 34 0 0 0 0 11
If so-how satisfied were you with the
process? 30 2 1 0 0 12
If you have contacted us in the past year to
schedule pick-up of large items or
appliances,how satisfied were you with the
service? 21 0 2 0 0 21
Average Household Size- 2.41
Average Years in OPH- 20.26
Additional Comments-See Memo
Summary of Findings
As of August 20, 2021,the survey received 44 responses between online forms and mailed-in surveys. I
created a data table in Excel to show the date we received (can also be seen above). Overall, the
satisfaction level with the sanitation services the city offers is quite high, as are the clean-up days
offered within the city and large item pick-ups. The main complaint shown in the data is that people
would prefer for recycling to be picked up every week along with garbage, instead of every other week,
citing that the bins get too full within that period.
Not disclosed on the data table were other comments made by citizens in the survey, regarding any
other thoughts they had about sanitation services. A full account of them can be found on the Google
form and attached documents.
Page 23 of 30
Question 1:What is your current level of satisfaction with overall maintenance of city streets,
sidewalks, and other infrastructure?
What is your current level of satisfaction with
overall maintenance of city streets, sidewalks,
and other infrastructure?
00
■#Very Satisfied 0 3
■#Somewhat Sastisfied
#Neutral
#Somewhat Dissatisfied
■#Very Dissatisfied
■#N/A
This question aims to gauge satisfaction that residents have with general city facilities. This can include
the above stated sidewalks, streets, and the upkeeping of public areas. As the graph shows, most of the
responses were either"Very Satisfied" or"Somewhat Satisfied."There were three responses that fell
under the "Very Dissatisfied" category, and were mostly due to the abundance of leaves and sticks on
sidewalks, as well as people not picking up after their pets when on public trails/sidewalks.
Question 2: How would you rank your current level of satisfaction with garbage services?
How would you rank your current level of
satisfaction with garbage services?
■#Very Satisfied 1
■#Somewhat Sastisfied
#Neutral
#Somewhat Dissatisfied
■#Very Dissatisfied
■#N/A
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Questions 2 and 3 both directly target garbage services and recycling services. A lot larger percentage of
residents are satisfied with the garbage services that the city provides as opposed to the provided
recycling services.The biggest complaint that separated the two of them was that garbage gets
collected every week, while recycling only gets picked up every two weeks. Recycling bins get overfilled
in that time period, and it has been causing a lot of frustrations with residents.
Question 3: How would you rank your current level of satisfaction with recycling services?
How would you rank your current level of
satisfaction with recycling services?
1 0
■#Very Satisfied
■ #Somewhat Satisfied
■ #Neutral
#Somewhat Dissatisfied
■ #Very Dissatisfied
■ #N/A
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Question 4: How satisfied are you with the collection day being on Thursday each week for garbage
and every other week for recycling?
How satisfied are you with the collection day
being on Thursday each week for garbage and
every other week for recycling?
0
■#Very Satisfied 5
1
■ #Somewhat Satisfied
#Neutral -10
#Somewhat Dissatisfied
■ #Very Dissatisfied
■ #N/A 35
As previously mentioned, the main reason behind resident's discontentment with sanitation services is
due the every-other-week schedule that recycling falls under.
Question 5: Have you participated in any of the City's semi-annual clean-up days?
Have you participated in any of the City's semi-
annual clean-up days?
■#Very Satisfied
■ #Somewhat Satisfied
#Neutral 0
0
#Somewhat Dissatisfied
0
■ #Very Dissatisfied 0
■ #N/A
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Question 6: If so, how satisfied were you with the process?
If so, how satisfied were you with the process?
■#Very Satisfied
■ #Somewhat Satisfied
■ #Neutral 0,
■ #Somewhat Dissatisfied 0/''
■ #Very Dissatisfied 1J
■ #N/A 10
Question 7: If you have contacted us in the past year to schedule pick-up of large items or appliances,
how satisfied were you with the service?
If you have contacted us in the past year to
schedule pick-up of large items or appliances,
how satisfied were you with the service?
■#Very Satisfied
■ #Somewhat Satisfied
■ #Neutral
■ #Somewhat Dissatisfied
■ #Very Dissatisfied
■ #N/A 2
0 0 0
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Additional comments specifically regarding question 7:
Question 7: If you have contacted us in the past year to schedule pick-up of large items or appliances,
how satisfied were you with the service?
• "Very satisfied"
• "Very satisfied"
• "Satisfied, but cost was high for aged lawnmower pick up, which makes me somewhat
dissatisfied."
• "Very satisfied."
• "This is a great service and so affordable. It keeps people from keeping junk on their property
and becoming an eyesore or mosquito breeding. Thanks, love this service."
• "Very happy. I had absolutely no issue with arranging it or when they picked it up."
• "Satisfied the items were gone when I got home from work"
• "Mary is wonderful as always. She is always ready to help with any concerns your lucky to have
her.Just to add something.The guys plowing this last winter were GREAT! Please keep them
they know what there doing. Roads were wonderful. They were always on top of it."
• "Yes; I called and it disappeared!"
• "Very Satisfied."
• "Very friendly people answer the phone. Always get my things picked up as scheduled. Very
friendly drivers."
• "Very happy all went well."
• "Everything we requested was picked up"
• "Great service"
• "Satisfied"
• "satisfied"
Additional comments regarding the garbage/recycling service collection service are below.
• "Too many weeds and dead trees in this city."
• "I live at .Tennis Sanitation will not pick up lawn bags here because of living in a
town home."
• "We have been very happy with Tennis-they do a great job. My only complaint is with the
recycling being every other week-we fill ours up and really wish it came once a week like the
garbage."
• "Tennis does a very good job."
• "I really appreciate the weekly yard waste pickup. We seem to have quite a few households that
LEAVE trash cans outside clearly visible. Also, additional dog poop stations with poop bags."
• "Garbage service is great. It would be nice if the city could do something about resident blowing
leaves and grass into the street."
• "If garbage is on the ground-they always come pick it up."
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• "Very unhappy about the used cans given to townhomes. I had 2 very clean cans that looked like
new and you exchanged them for yours-the pits. Boutwells got the shaft. I can't believe they
knew what you were going to do for the low bid. I will vote for a change in company. These are
an embarrassment. Service excellent, cans BAD. Rules require kept in garage
• "I wish recycling would be picked up weekly. This would encourage folks to recycle more items
that they are able instead of having a full bin and deciding the throw it in the garbage. Our
family always has extra recycling that we have to keep in our garage until we can fit it in. I know
many other cities that pick up weekly and some only have garbage picked up bi-weekly."
• "I think Tennis has been great. If something accidentally drops,they stop to pick it up."
• "Love the pick up of lawn, organics too, so helpful and it makes it easy for residents to keep their
property looking good if there is an easy way to dispose of it."
• "I used to live in St. Paul Park where Tennis Sanitation is located and I would stop by with
questions sometimes and they were always friendly and helpful and I rented a dumpster from
them once. It's an excellent hauler!!"
• "Would love for recycling to be collected every week! Otherwise we are satisfied with the
service."
• "I like the service that Tennis provides for garbage recycling."
• "They do a good job"
• "No. Service is excellent."
• "Garbage and recycling service built into the city levy is great. It would be really great to have
every week recycling and it would be wonderful to have organics recycling."
• "We are very satisfied with our service and would like to keep them"
• "I think Tennis has done a stellar job and hope the city continues to use them."
• "Nice people"
• "every other week for recycling is very inconvenient"
• "Very satisfied"
• "They do a great job in my opinion."
• "Our Recycling bin fills up fast so it would be nice to either have a 2nd bin or weekly pickup."
• "good service"
• "Have many friends and relatives in other cities and states. We in Oak Park are very blessed to
have the overall services that we have."
• "Very satisfied with Tennis"
• "Consider recycling pick up more often. Usually overflowing with 2 week cycle"
• "Weekly recycling pickup would be great."
• "Nope, service is great"
• "Appreciate being able to recycle organics thru WA County."
• "I would like to see recycling being picked up weekly. Our family size recycling container if
completely full by day 9."
• "would like the addition of collection of organic waste/compost"
• "I think they do a very professional job-At the semi annual clean up events they work their
backside off.Awesome program"
• "Be better if recycling was every week."
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Conclusion and Takeaways
After gathering responses from the survey,we can use this data in the decision-making process when
the time comes around for sanitation service bidding, as well as considering options for multi-tenant
housing to utilize recycling services. It also gives us a good idea of what the average household size is
and how long residents have lived in Oak Park Heights.After this information was collected, the 2020
Census data also became available, showing more detailed demographics for Oak Park Heights.
Total Pqmlation in Persons per Population in
population households household group quarters
2020 Census 2,422 2,258 4,849 4,292 1.90 657
2010 Census 2,115 1,911 4,445 3,908 2.05 537
Change,2010-2024 +367 +347 +404 +384 -0.15 +20
The census data that shows an average of 1.90 persons per household,which is similar to my estimated
average of 2.41. It is important to note that the census data averages are based on the total population
of 4,849 people in Oak Park Heights, not just the 45 that responded to the sanitation survey. While we
don't have a large number of responses to the sanitation survey,we have received a variety of
responses that still give good data when considering future sanitation service options.
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