I recently wrote about the merits of using mediation as a tool to resolve business disputes relating to land and business acquisition, land development, public permitting and related conflicts. Mediation is especially helpful, in my opinion, when money is less the object in dispute and it is more so about a difference of opinion. Of
How the Slow City Movement Revived One Small Town in Central Italy
Why would any mayor want to describe his community as a “slow city”? Stefano Cimicchi is the former Mayor of Orvieto, a medieval hill town with a population of 20,000 located in central Italy. Cimicchi was one of the first city leaders to sign on to the “slow city movement” when it began in
Another City Attempts to Collect Illegal Transportation Fees – Struck Down by the Court Again
The development community has long maintained that the practice of cities exacting transportation fees or charges from developers as a condition of development approval is illegal, but the issue had not been directly and fully addressed by the courts until the Minnesota Supreme Court handed down its decision in Harstad v. City of Woodbury in
Finding the Future: Can the Great Lakes Survive?
When the gales of early winter whip up the waters of the Great Lakes, rock formations and sand beaches take a beating and often give way to the force of these majestic water bodies. We’ve seen recent headlines announcing the fall of the “sea stack” on Minnesota’s north shore as a winter storm reduced
Redevelopment and Vacancies Lead St. Paul to Examine the Grand Avenue Business District
Over the last year and a half, St. Paul civic and business leaders have frequently commented on a growing number of commercial vacancies along the Grand Avenue business district as a number of longtime restaurants and retail establishments have either closed or relocated. The loss of high-profile businesses, particularly near Victoria Crossing, has led many
A Sobering Reminder of Who is in Charge of Your Land
Imagine you are a landowner whose property is dedicated to a use that has run its course—say a golf course for example. The land represents a sizable family investment and naturally your thoughts turn to what other uses are possible to assure the land is put to a productive and, hopefully, profitable use for
Finding the Future: Guatemalan Fishing Village Bans Plastics
Visitors to San Pedro La Laguna typically arrive by water taxi at docks that are shared with fishing boats and tour guides. Just up the hill a couple of blocks is a long bright banner strung between buildings announcing the plastics’ ban rolled out three years ago. San Pedro is a small town of
Mayo Expands Beyond Bricks and Mortar to Reach Consumers: Interview with Jim Yolch, Global Business Solutions
At each of three campuses, located in Minnesota, Arizona and Florida, Mayo Clinic is busy expanding hospital, clinic and treatment facilities. These building projects are designed to offer leading approaches in medicine, centered on diagnosis and treatment of difficult diseases – the key to Mayo’s worldwide reputation as one of the top providers of
Minneapolis’s Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance is Failing to Make Gains
When the Minneapolis City Council adopted its inclusionary zoning ordinance, together with its Unified Housing Policy, in late 2018 there was optimism that the ordinance would result in the creation of much needed affordable housing in the city. The ordinance mandates a minimum percentage of 10-20 percent of units within multifamily buildings be affordable where
Cities Making it Harder to Supply Affordable Housing
The fact that Minnesota, and especially the metropolitan region of St. Paul/Minneapolis, is experiencing a severe affordable housing crisis is not disputed. The Metropolitan Council recently released data documenting that the metro region of Minnesota is growing substantially but that the supply of new housing, affordable across a broad range of housing types, is lagging.