SAP thrives by adding residents who sustain and grow the community and business district. A recent proposal for development of lower Luther Seminary campus suggests 600 to 800 new housing units on 15 acres. Breck Woods (5+ acres) will not contain housing and its remote, dead-end location raises questions about its utility as a park (my opinion).
The result will be 60 to 80 housing units per acre. The well planned Ford site, which seems comparable with respect to its location and integration into an adjoining residential and small business community, provides 2,400 to 4,000 (maximum) units on 135 acres (18 to 30 units per acre).
The Ford site does not have the terrain/accessibility issues of the lower seminary campus. The proposal for lower campus property seems inspired by high density University-Avenue-type development, wonderful in that location but novel for SAP.
Gary Nelsestuen,
St. Anthony Park
