Major 2026 developments slated for South St. Paul

(Major 2026 developments slated for West St. Paul)

Major 2026 developments slated for South St. Paul
By Jake Spitzack | Staff Writer | January 2026

The South St. Paul City Council recently adopted its 2026 budget, approving a 8.36% levy increase that will raise annual property taxes on an average valued home in the city – $293,847 – by $179. About 40% of the increase is attributed to an increase in property values, which are set by the Dakota County assessor. However, the City has a few big projects on the horizon that the bump will support as well. Among them in 2026 are:

• The City’s new aquatic facility at Northview Park – Construction is expected in 2026, with the new facility opening for a partial season in 2027 ($8 million total).
  
• Marie Avenue reconstruction from 9th Avenue to 15th Avenue. Work will continue up to 21st Avenue in 2027 ($5.1 million total).
  
• Ready the Hardman Triangle site for major development, including environmental studies and site work ($2.5 million over two years). A purchase agreement with a developer seeking to create multifamily housing, a restaurant and a destination retail business such as a pickleball center is expected to be signed by March. Construction may begin in 2027, including a city-owned park within the site.
  
• Replacing eight HVAC units at Doug Woog Arena ($280,000).
  
• Fueling system upgrade at Fleming Field Airport ($350,000).
  
• Lead service line replacement project – Some 1,000 homeowners will be notified by mail in early 2026 alerting them that their property’s water service line may contain lead or galvanized pipe materials and will be replaced in 2026 or 2027 at little or no cost to them. Affected residents are expected to schedule a free consultation with SEH Inc. to verify their service line material, and the first replacements will likely begin in May. Work will include removing any remaining lead piping between the water meter and the street. It is the homeowner’s responsibility to replace piping between the meter and the home. The State of Minnesota is funding the replacement of the lead service lines through the Minnesota Drinking Water Revolving Fund. To check materials for your service line, visit maps.umn.edu/LSL.
  
• Wakota Industrial Business Park – The nearly 80,000 square-foot office and manufacturing facility being built in the emerging Wakota Industrial Business Park at 843 Hardman Ave. is expected to be completed in late 2026. Danner Inc., a trucking and road construction company, is spearheading the $7 million project and plans to rent about two-thirds of the building to other light industrial tenants. It will also seek to create an additional 400,000 square feet of office, warehouse and manufacturing space in future construction phases at the 35-acre site to be used for its own expanded operations. The site was once a wastewater plant and dump and the South St. Paul Economic Development Authority secured grants from the Dakota County Community Development Agency, Metropolitan Council and Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development to help cover about $5 million in cleanup and soil correction costs. The redevelopment is expected to create 82 new full-time jobs.
  
• New Public Works Central Maintenance facility – Construction is expected to begin this spring on the city’s new public works central maintenance facility, located on a 15-acre city-owned site southwest of Wakota Trailhead, near the I-494 Wakota Bridge. The approximately 70,000-square-foot facility designed by Hagen Christensen & McIlwain (HCM) Architects will feature modern equipment, more indoor space for fleet maintenance and storage, and meet new code requirements. The current facility at 400 Richmond St. E. dates to 1970 and was determined to need replacement following an evaluation in late 2023. To make way for the approximately $27 million development, the city’s residential yard-waste drop-off site that had operated for more than 35 years permanently closed in mid-November. The project includes extending Verderosa Avenue to Hardman Avenue South, and the city was awarded $3 million from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development for that component. The Central Maintenance facility serves as home base for the City’s streets, fleet, parks and utilities divisions, which have more than 20 full-time staff. The new facility is expected to be finished in late 2027.

Other projects:

• The City is continuing preliminary agreement work with Minneapolis Gymnastics, which is discussing purchasing the former city library building for conversion into a youth play facility. $2 million is earmarked to help renovate the building, which needs several mechanical systems replaced.
• A new Holiday gas station is anticipated to be built at Concord and Villaume and open this summer or fall. A Godfather’s pizza will be within it.

Highlight from 2025
“The opening of the Asian Mart was nice,” said South St. Paul City Administrator Ryan Garcia in a recent interview. “It was a small business that worked really hard to move to South St. Paul, down on Concord Exchange, in a new building [they constructed]. It was a big project and took a lot of partnership with Dakota County CDA and their Open to Business program and the Small Business Administration and the city’s EDA. I think it’s just a really good example of a lot of different folks coming together to help somebody grow their business.”

City budget
The city’s budget comprises separate budgets used for various public purposes, and four are partially supported by property taxes: the General Fund, the Infrastructure Fund, Doug Woog Arena Levy and Debt Service Funds. Of the 8.36% levy increase, the majority ($1.1 million) supports the General Fund. The Doug Woog Arena Levy is increasing $177,000, Infrastructure Levy is increasing $125,000 and Debt Services is ticking up about $12,000. The total budget for those funds is set at $28.65 million, a 10.03% increase over the 2025 budget.