City of Burnsville a Finalist For Environmental Award

The Minnesota Environmental Initiative (MEI) recently named the City of Burnsville a finalist for its first Sustainable Communities award.

According to MEI categories, the award recognizes a public/private partnership that demonstrates a commitment to efficient and sustainable community development. 

"With Sustainable Communities being a brand new category this year, I think the judges were looking to recognize projects that were much more holistic; projects that addressed an entire system rather than just one thing," MEI senior project associate Georgia Rubenstein told Patch. 

Burnsville was nominated for its Sustainability Guide Plan, which was adopted by the City Council in 2009 and details 14 priority areas of eco-friendly development.

"I think the judges thought the Burnsville plan did a great job of exemplifying a new type of environmental thinking. It showed a systems wide approach and addressed all aspects of sustainability in the city," Rubenstein explained.

According to a statement from the City of Burnsville, it has completed more than 45 sustainability initiatives—addressing topics in each of the 14 priority areas—since the adoption of the Guide Plan.

"Completed initiatives include the geothermal heating and cooling system installed in the Burnsville Ice Center and the super-insulated white roof on City Hall. Both have already reduced energy use in Burnsville and are estimated to provide a combined annual cost savings of nearly $90,000," the statement read.

This year's MEI judges wanted to see nominations that demonstrated thorough planning, outcomes achieved and collaboration between local government and industry experts. According to Rubenstein, the Burnsville application satisfied all of these criteria.

Developed through a collaboration of City Council members, staff and experts from 10 community organizations and companies, the Guide Plan includes the following priority areas for Burnsville:

• Sustainable building practices
• Community health
• Recycling and waste reduction
• Healthy urban forests
• Sustainability education
• Surface and groundwater
• Innovative opportunities
• Environmental purchasing
• Product stewardship
• Greenhouse gas reductions
• Sustainable land use policies
• Sustainable transportation
• Alternative energy
• Energy efficiency    

The Sustainable Communities category is expected to be one of the most competitive in the MEI award system and as such, Burnsville faces stiff opposition this year from the cities of Edina and St. Paul. 

Edina was nominated for its adaptive re-use of the Con-Agra Food building. The building was rehabilitated to house Edina's expanding Public Works department.

The St. Paul Port Authority was nominated for its redevelopment of the Beacon Bluff area, which is a 61-acre site located along the Phalen Corridor in St. Paul's Dayton’s Bluff neighborhood.   

In addition to Sustainable Communities, MEI will present awards to local government agencies in the categories of Energy and Climate Protection, Environmental Education, Green Businesses and Environmental Management and Natural Resource Protection and Restoriation.

The winners will be announced at the MEI awards dinner on Thurs., May 26.

Of the 15 finalists, one project will be chosen for the Partnership of the Year Award through an online vote. The overall winner will receive a prize of $1,000 to continue their work.

Burnsville residents can vote for the Sustainability Guide Plan between April 27 and May 6.