The Lake Elmo Economic Development Authority approved the minutes from a Sept. 17 special meeting and reviewed a first draft of its 2026 work plan, focusing on city‑owned property disposition, business outreach, and a newly released public GIS parcel and parks map.

Community Development Director Nouss Stopa presented the draft and said it mirrors the authority’s 2025 goals but will feature revised project descriptions and action items. "Okay. So this will be our, first draft of the 2026 work plan. You'll see it somewhat similar to the 2025 work plan," Stopa said. She asked commissioners to suggest additions before a final draft is prepared for the next meeting.

The work plan highlights a disposition strategy for all publicly owned properties in Lake Elmo, including an ongoing evaluation of a 180‑acre site. Stopa said the city engaged an Urban Land Institute technical assistance panel (ULI TAP) for the 180‑acre site; staff expect the TAP process to conclude this year and to begin marketing that parcel by the second quarter of the coming year if the panel’s work supports that step. Stopa also said the city will present options for Old City Hall at an upcoming workshop; she described six options staff will discuss.

Staff described an internal GIS review to inventory city parcels and assess whether each should be retained or repurposed. Stopa said an initial GIS pull showed roughly 50 publicly owned parcels to review and that many of those parcels are retention ponds or out‑lot easements tied to developments. She warned some parcels will require legal research to resolve historical easements or transfers that may not have been completed as intended.

The draft work plan includes marketing and outreach elements. Staff said they will assist city communications in producing online stories and social posts highlighting village businesses and events, coordinate with the Stillwater Area Chamber of Commerce and Connect Lake Elmo, and consider regular business outreach such as surveys or a forum to hear business owners’ needs.

On business support, staff described an existing relationship with the Washington County Community Development Agency (CDA). The authority funds a county‑run Home Improvement Loan Program; Stopa said the city provides roughly $47,000–$48,000 to that program rather than operating a parallel local program. Commissioners discussed exploring whether other CDA programs or façade‑improvement grants are available for local businesses and suggested inviting CDA staff to present a workshop on county resources.

Staff updated the authority on the city’s public GIS and maps project, created with Bolton & Menk and connected to Washington County data. The new parcel viewer and parks/trails maps pull county data and add local planning layers such as shoreline buffers, zoning, water/sewer/storm utility lines and planning‑phase boundaries. Stopa demonstrated that the viewer links to county assessor and plat records and said the city’s map refreshes when county data updates. "It's on our website. Cool," she said of the public viewer.

Other items noted during the discussion: an RFP for the former fire station/parks building will go to the City Council that night; the ULI TAP for the 180‑acre site is scheduled Oct. 22–24 with a stakeholder meeting on Oct. 23; Washington County CDA funded about half the TAP process; and staff expect a TAP report back in a couple of months (a tentative November 18 follow‑up date was mentioned). Commissioners added a placeholder in the work plan to consider reuse or value capture for the city’s closed landfill and recommended adding strategic acquisition of properties to the next meeting’s scope if commissioners want the city to pursue purchases for future development.

The authority directed staff to gather feedback and return a final 2026 work plan at the next EDA meeting, scheduled for Dec. 2, 2025.

Votes at a glance: The only formal recorded vote in the transcript excerpt was approval of the minutes from the Sept. 17 special meeting; the motion passed with three affirmative responses recorded in the meeting audio.