“From a land use standpoint, we have some vacant pieces left,” relays Sanders. “We’ve had a number of pieces that had remained vacant for years that have been developed. So, we’re seeing some reinvestment in the community and new investment by businesses. That’s helping build up our commercial sector, and as a result, positively impacts all our businesses. Also the industrial park, and what’s occurring over there, will have positive impacts on our local economic growth as well.” BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE Home to hundreds of acres of parkland and surrounded by the largest solar farm in Minnesota, Becker is also taking steps towards sustainability. “We have transitioned into that clean energy sector, which really fits with Becker’s history,” expresses Mayor Kolbinger. The city’s wastewater treatment facility features an 11-acre solar panel installation that offsets operational costs. “The community is already built in a way that is very sustainable in terms of if we’re adding housing, industrial use, commercial, we already have many of the amenities in place,” he relays. “Our wastewater treatment facility has a lot of unused capacity already.That’s something that over the past 25 years, we’ve made sure was not a barrier to additional development.” 8 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 06, ISSUE 04
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