About Blaine
Blaine is a rapidly growing metropolitan community situated 11 miles north of downtown Minneapolis. The City encompasses 34 square miles with a population of 71,891. The City’s park and recreation system provides a variety of leisure opportunities. Blaine is also home
Blaine is one of the fastest growing suburbs in the Twin Cities Metro area. Its population has grown by over 12,000 residents since 2010. Blaine continues to rank high in new housing development in the metro area.
to the National Sports Center, TPC Twin Cities golf course, and Four Seasons Curling Club. Blaine has a strong and growing industrial and commercial business sector. The City is home to over 1,400 businesses, including Aveda Corporation, Infinite Campus, Bermo Inc., Dayton Rogers Manufacturing, Fogerty Arena, and Northtown Mall. Over 25,000 people are employed in the City of Blaine by our businesses. With competitive land prices, a strong labor pool, and excellent freeway access to Interstate 35W and Highways 10 and 65, Blaine has an abundant supply of development opportunities for growing and emerging businesses. The Anoka County Airport is located in Blaine which is the Metro Area’s second busiest reliever airport.
• Population
Demographics and Employment
• Median Household Income
• Number of Jobs
• Households
• Median Home Value
• Number of Businesses
Source: Metropolitan Council, 2022 Community Estimates
Source: Metropolitan Council, 2022 Community Estimates
Blaine is home to over 1,400 businesses.
Source: Metropolitan Council, 2022 Community Estimates
Construction and Development
• Construction Values
• Permits
• Residential Construction and Growth
• Industrial Development and Expansions
• Commercial Development
• Opened in 2023
Residential Construction Values
Commercial Construction Values
Based on New Addition, New Buildings, and Tenant Finish Permits
2023 Permits with Highest Valuation
Residential Construction and Growth
Despite high interest rates, new housing starts continued to be strong in Blaine through 2023 with a variety of housing types.
Permits issued in 2023 included 303 single family detached homes and 89 townhomes.
Blaine again ranked in the top five market for housing growth among the Twin Cities suburbs.
New Residential Units 2012 - 2021
Source: Residential and Commercial Permits
2023 Industrial Development and Expansions
Naples II Industrial Warehouse
10400 Naples Street NE
• 195,000 square foot speculative warehouse building
Park Construction
10160 Naples Street NE
• 15,000 square foot office and shop with an additional 8,000 square foot of cold storage building
Minnesota State Emergency Operations Center
3925 Pheasant Ridge Drive NE
• 37,000 square foot headquarters building
Advanced Moldings
9472 88th Avenue NE
• 21,718 square foot addition to the existing facility
Aerofab
3020 104th Lane NE
• 15,000 square foot addition to the existing building
2023 Commercial Development
Chick-fil-A
12331 Ulysses Street NE
• 4,950 square foot single story restaurant with drive thru
Scooter’s Coffee
150 89th Avenue NE
• 678 square foot drive thru coffee shop
Culver’s
4121 108th Avenue NE
• 4,224 square feet single story restaurant with drive thru
Heartland Dental
12371 Ulysses Street NE
• 4,20 square foot dental office
Tommy’s Car Wash
4252 122nd Avenue NE
• 4,553 square foot automated tunnel car wash
99th Avenue Building
9927 Ulysses Street NE
• 4,063 square foot building for three restaurants
Opened in 2023
Chick-fil-A
12331 Ulysses Street NE
• 4,950 square foot single story restaurant with drive thru
Blaine 35 Building B
8650 West 35W Service Drive NE
• 100,000 square foot building leased to Chandler Industries
Naples II Industrial Warehouse
10400 Naples Street NE
• 195,000 speculative heavy industrial warehouse building
Scooter’s Coffee
150 89th Avenue NE
• 678 square foot drive thru coffee shop
Cafe Zupas
12391 Ulysses Street NE
• 3,317 square foot single story restaurant with a drive thru
99th Avenue Building
9927 Ulysses Street NE
• 4,062 square foot commercial building completed in 2023
• Great Steak/Planet Smoothie has moved into a portion of the building
Blaine Resources
• Business Employment
• Business Outreach
• Home Loan Improvement Program
• EDA Fire Suppression Grant Program
• Blaine Small Business Loan Program
• EDA Land and Redevelopment Activity
Business Employment
After a decline of over 3,000 jobs in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 2021 witnessed a significant reduction in unemployment rates. Blaine gained approximately 2,800 jobs in 2021 falling about 1,200 jobs short of pre-COVID numbers.
Blaine continued to witness decreased unemployment in 2022 with Blaine having the lowest unemployment rate the City has seen since 1998. Job growth is expected to continue with estimates showing 31,000 jobs in Blaine by 2040.
Blaine Top Employers
Business Employment
Blaine Unemployment Rate
Source: Metropolitan Council Community Data
3M Open Golf Tournament
The City of Blaine hosted a hospitality tent at the 3M Open in July. Blaine staff were present Thursday through Sunday filling the tent with businesses, real estate brokers/developers, Blaine staff, and other invited guests. All allotted tickets were distributed to guests attending the event.
Economic Development Summit
The City of Blaine hosted its annual Economic Development Summit in May to showcase the vision for the future of Blaine. The city welcomed restaurants, retailers, developers, bankers, real estate brokers and other invited guests to share in the excitement of the opportunities within the City.
Blaine Manufacturing Tours
The City of Blaine in partnership with the MetroNorth Chamber of Commerce organized the inaugural Blaine Manufacturing Day to celebrate Manufacturing Month. A group of students from Blaine High School spent the morning touring Surecast, Engineered Materials, Turfco, and Crown Iron Works in Blaine.
Business Visits
This year staff and elected officials visited with 16 Blaine businesses and non-profits. The visits presented a great opportunity to gain insight into each company’s condition, employment size, and operations.
Apricot Lane Boutique
Ascential Medical Life Services
El Norte Mexican Restaurant
Fairy Tails Grooming
Fresh Picked Pizza
General Pattern
Goddard School
Kingdom Baking
Lulu Lavender Boutique
Lead Network Pro
McDonalds
Motomart
National Sports Center
Nautical Bowls
Northtown Mall
OMS Specialists
Package Edge Corporation
Pioneer Cycle
SOTA Workspaces
Zopec Medical
Blaine Business Council
The City played an active role in 2023 at the quarterly Blaine Business Council providing updates to the business community on development and public safety.
Home Improvement Loans and Grants
Maintaining existing housing stock is a key component to a strong economic climate in the City of Blaine. According to the Minneapolis Area Realtors, the average 2023 home sale price in Blaine was $420,115 up from $400,182 in 2022. This is above the average for Anoka County which is $381,243.
Blaine has over 25,000 housing units with a quarter of those constructed prior to 1980.
Blaine has a variety of programs to assist residents with housing updates and down payment assistance including home improvement loans, down payment assistance loans, front door grants, major remodel grants, and more. The home improvement loan program is available to any homeowner, however the program’s general focus is to encourage those with older homes to make improvements and maintain housing stock. There are currently 73 outstanding home improvement loans with 14 new loans in 2023. The City also provided 15 down payment assistance loans for eligible individuals buying homes within city limits. The front door and major remodel grant programs are available to homeowners with homes older than 30 years old that were valued under $400,000. The City issued 36 grants in 2023.
EDA Fire Suppression Grant Program
In 2016, the Blaine Economic Development Authority reestablished the fire suppression grant program to encourage owners of commercial and industrial buildings to install fire suppression. No new grants were awarded in 2023, however to date, the program has distributed $298,633 in grants to 16 different properties across the City.
Small Business Loan Program
In 2018, the Blaine EDA established a small business loan program to encourage reinvestment in existing commercial and industrial properties. The intent of this program is to provide additional financial assistance to small business owners who are improving an existing building and/or redeveloping a commercial or industrial property. In general, projects will increase tax base, improve blighted properties, increase employment, and bring properties into conformance with existing City and State codes. In 2022, the EDA updated the program to include interior improvements including capital expenditures as eligible expenses for this loan. Additionally, the maximum loan amount was increased to $100,000. In 2022, the City of Blaine provided a $75,000 loan to 4 Taps LLC. No small Business loans were administered in 2023.
Northtown Redevelopment Study
The Northtown Redevelopment Study was completed in 2022 creating a long term strategy for redevelopment of the Northtown Mall property plus the surrounding area. The study outlines district principles that help address land use, redevelopment/revitalization options, multi-modal transportation and public improvements in the study area. The City’s goal is to help Northtown Mall continue to be a relevant and important asset to the City and to spur growth appropriate with current market trends and community needs and desires. This study is estimated to take 20-30 years to reach full realization but the City has put together a working group to move forward with short term public and private improvements that will serve as the catalyst for the redevelopment of the area as a whole. In 2023, a new Scooter’s Coffee was built in the area officially launching the first project since the completion of the study.
Goals of the Study
Restore the Hub
Welcome to All Gray to Green
Barriers to Assets
Complete the Streets
Strengthen the Mix
Celebrate Springbrook Creek
Move In Mobility Forward
Unite the District
105th Area Redevelopment Study
The Blaine City Council has identified an area near 105th Avenue, Nassau Street, and Radisson Road for redevelopment into an entertainment district to serve the entire Blaine community and capitalize on the activity at the National Sports Center. The City undertook a visioning study in 2021 to guide redevelopment. The visioning study was completed in 2022 and has progressed toward selecting a master developer. In late 2022, the City selected Elevage Development Group as the master developer to bring the vision for the 105th Area Redevelopment Study to life.
Through 2023, the City worked with the developer with project details being released in 2024.
Purchase of lot in the 105th Avenue and Nassau Street area from National Sports Center of 10524 Nassau Street
The EDA acquired a parcel south of Surecast Foundry from the National Sports Center. This property was purchased as part of the continued effort to implement the 105th Area Redevelopment plan.