MONTICELLO — Municipal leaders gave a “State of the City” address last week, offering updates on Monticello’s growth and development, during the Chamber of Commerce & Industry’s monthly luncheon April 16.
“There’s a lot of projects and initiatives and really wonderful, cool things that are happening in our community,” City Administrator Rachel Leonard said in opening up the presentation, noting much of it pertains to Monticello’s 2040 Vision & Plan.
The panel of Monticello department heads also included Community Development Director Angela Schumann, Finance Director Sarah Rathlisberger, Public Works Director/City Engineer Matt Leonard and Parks, Arts, and Recreation Director Tom Pawelk.
Some of the big projects taking shape that were highlighted during the address include revival of the downtown, park improvements, The Pointes at Cedar development, a new public works facility and a new water treatment plant.
Downtown revamp
Schumann delved into downtown revitalization during her portion of the presentation, noting all of the current projects happening in Monticello’s core city blocks stem straight from the Downtown Small Area Plan, adopted in 2017.
“That document looks at a specific area of our downtown and it sets up a plan for a thriving, vibrant downtown,” she said.
The plan aims to mix public and private investments, she said, while supporting existing businesses and fostering new projects and ideas, from small to large.
Small projects, she said, include things like improving lighting, adding sidewalks to better connect areas and sprinkling more artwork throughout the downtown.
Larger projects, which she referred to as “projects of scale,” include things like the massive, five-story Block 52 development on the corner of Broadway and Pine streets.
City leaders’ vision of downtown revitalization also involves mixing uses — including commercial, art, entertainment and residential — and creating a welcoming environment that will draw folks downtown in all seasons.
Block 52 is a prime example of that mixed-use philosophy taking shape. One half of the 30,000-square-foot ground-floor is planned to encompass retail businesses, while Simplicity Group Financial Services will bring a 102-person office to the other half, with the upper floors housing residential units. About half of those 87 apartments are now leased, Schumann said.
A restaurant anticipated to occupy the corner of Block 52 at River and Pine streets has garnered much curiosity from the public.
During the luncheon, Chamber Ambassador Mari Lou McCormic inquired as to the status of that space, to which Schumann replied that, while several eateries have expressed interest, she has not been alerted to any one restaurant signing on yet.
Traversing downtown
Matt Leonard discussed how transportation will play into downtown improvements, explaining there is a need for more parking, along with better pedestrian access and safety, while still moving traffic swiftly through the area — things his team is working to address.
More public parking lots are in the works, he said, including one on Walnut Street, between Bliss Salon and Monticello Family Dentistry. Angled parking is also being added along River Street, he said, near West Bridge Park.
Public Works is also looking to spruce up the downtown with several streetscape amenities, he said, in addition to performing its usual spate of spring street work.
“We’re going to be installing some street trees, colored concrete, planting areas for vegetation. The street lighting poles are going to be set up to accommodate hanging baskets,” Leonard said. “And all of this is just to help make it feel like a downtown and to help calm traffic and make it a place that pedestrians want to go.”
Walnut Street is a key piece of the downtown puzzle, he said, noting the Downtown Small Area Plan suggests Walnut become a “convertible street,” able to be closed down to traffic for large public events. That will include Walk & Roll in June.
“We really hope it’s a gathering place in the future,” Leonard said.
In anticipation of that, food-truck hookups will be installed, along with a terrace area for people to hang out near Block 52, he said.
Another major element has been extending Walnut so that it connects with River Street, providing better circulation and access to West Bridge Park and the waterfront, he said.
Park upgrades
West Bridge Park will also be getting a makeover, specifically on its non-riverfront edges, mainly along the section abutting River Street, which Pawelk detailed in his presentation.
There will be “sustainable features such as boulders, granite walls, perennial gardens, rain gardens and also prairie planting on the sloped areas, on the hillside,” he said.
Playground improvements are also planned there, and state grant applications to cover costs have been submitted, Pawelk said, noting the Monticello Lions Club has contributed a match. Once funding is secured, installation is expected to take place in 2025.
Pawelk said community events that have traditionally taken place in West Bridge Park — including Music on the Mississippi outdoor concerts — will be moved to Ellison Park during construction.
Action is also happening at Bertram Chain of Lakes Regional Athletic Park, with that project entering its second phase, Pawelk said. That includes creating more parking, along with enhancing trails, signage and roadways.
The Pointes at Cedar
Recreation is also part of the plan at The Pointes at Cedar, a development anchored by a man-made central lake, comprising three smaller ponds, which will be surrounded by pathways, play areas, public art, an arboretum and more, along with commercial businesses and housing.
Schumann explained the project will give new life to “100 acres of underutilized, vacant land sitting at the heart of the city” between Chelsea Road on the north and School Boulevard to the south; from Cedar Street east to Edmonson Avenue.
This ambitious project aims to meld residential living, commercial business and recreation opportunities.
“It’s been reimagined as a mixed-use area, a little bit different than downtown, but still a place where you can live and work and play,” Schumann said.
She noted this is a great example of the city melding public and private investment, explaining the central body of water will be a public space, with public pathways and gathering areas.
Surrounding that will be private investment, which is already underway. This includes housing, with Deephaven Apartments fully complete and work well underway at the 200-unit Savanna Vista complex; and commercial development, including businesses like Healing Moments Counseling and West Metro Ophthalmology, both of which are in place.
Schumann gave a hint as to a future development, saying “we may expect to see a new hospitality project take shape on the north side.” She was alluding to interest expressed by Marriott, which is looking into putting a Fairfield Inn & Suites at The Pointes at Cedar.
Local sales tax
A brief overview of the city’s proposed local sales tax explained how it could potentially benefit both The Pointes at Cedar and improvements at Bertram.
The sales tax proposal, which will go before voters Nov. 5, would entail a half-cent tax on purchases made in the city, and is expected to bring in $1.4 million in revenue each year.
It would generate an estimated $30 million in funding altogether over a 20-year period, with half of that going toward Bertram and the other half funding the Pointes at Cedar. Voters will also have the option of putting the money toward only one of those projects, or of eschewing the tax altogether.
“Based on the commercial activity that we’re seeing in our community and the fact that we are drawing from around the region, about 70% of that revenue would be coming from people who do not live in Monticello,” Rachel Leonard said, citing a 2023 study by the University of Minnesota Extension Office.
Facilities projects
Those who do live in Monticello will reap the benefits of two major facilities projects that are underway here, as detailed by Matt Leonard.
The first is a new $28 million water treatment facility, which, he said, is currently in the design phase.
“We plan to be in construction starting in 2025, with completion in 2027 or 2028,” he said.
The city was awarded $11 million for construction of the facility through a 2023 state bonding bill passed by the Minnesota Legislature, but Leonard said more funding is still being sought.
“We’re looking for some additional funding from the state and we’re also looking at our federal partners,” he said.
The other facilities project is a new $35 million public works facility to replace the aging existing facility at 909 Golf Course Road, which the city has outgrown.
The current facility was built in 1975, with the most recent update in 1997.
Design plans for the new facility on a nearly 70-acre property on School Boulevard are 90% complete, Matt Leonard said, but the project has been put on pause as final funding is sought.
Staying funky
After outlining all of this growth, development and change, Rachel Leonard closed up the “State of the City” address by explaining that city leaders aim to maintain Monticello’s unique character even as they stride into the future.
“We work really hard to make sure that we’re staying in line with who the community is,” she said. “I think it’s this really interesting mix of urban and rural. We’re right next to the river, we’re right next to all of these transportation avenues.”
“There’s an element of just kind of unique funkiness in Monticello,” she continued. “Monticello doesn’t want to do things that other people are doing. We want to do things our own way.”
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