Scenic Hills Development · Inver Grove Heights
Keep Scenic Hills Scenic
What’s Happening
The vacant property at 1401 80th St E — formerly known as the Abbott property — was designated High Density Residential (HDR) in 2018 when the City of Inver Grove Heights adopted its 2040 Comprehensive Plan. That designation has existed throughout the entire development and sale of Scenic Hills as a single-family neighborhood.
The property was recently purchased by a new owner, Kurt, who has expressed a desire to develop the land as something other than an apartment building — specifically, as a continuation of the surrounding single-family homes. However, the current HDR designation prevents him from doing so without first going through a formal amendment process with the city. Kurt has told Scenic Hills residents that the city has not been receptive to changing the designation, and that he is in the process of submitting the required paperwork to formally request a re-guiding of the property.
The Current Land Zoning
The zoning map shows a single HDR parcel surrounded entirely by LMDR (Low-Medium Density Residential) properties — our neighborhood.
High-density residential development DOES NOT belong in this location, and the city has viable alternatives.
Our approach
Homes in Scenic Hills were sold and purchased adjacent to a parcel designated for high-density development — and many residents were not aware of that designation at the time of purchase. The city's own communication confirms this was the case.
The property owner shares our preference for single-family development and is actively pursuing the amendment process to make that possible. Our goal is to demonstrate to the city council and the Metropolitan Council — which has final authority over any comprehensive plan amendment — that the Scenic Hills community strongly supports a re-guiding of this property to Low or Medium Density Residential.
Why High density doesn't belong here
This designation is incompatible with the neighborhood that exists here
Every surrounding property is zoned Low-Medium Density Residential. A 100+ unit apartment complex would be an isolated island of high-density development incompatible in both scale and character with the community that has grown up around this parcel since 2018.
Parking overflow remains a real concern
While the city has indicated that primary access would be from public roads Austin Way and Ava Trail, apartment developments routinely generate parking demand that exceeds on-site capacity. The proximity of Scenic Hills means overflow parking onto our private streets is a realistic concern that deserves to be addressed directly.
80th Street has no sidewalk infrastructure
A significant increase in pedestrian and vehicle traffic from a high-density development would create safety hazards on a road that was not designed to accommodate it.
Better alternatives exist
There are multiple parcels of land surrounding Scenic Hills that are not embedded within existing single-family neighborhoods and would be far more appropriate for high-density development. We are asking the city to pursue those alternatives.