Eden Prairie council re‑guides Danfoss campus to mixed use in 5–0 vote

The Eden Prairie City Council on Tuesday voted 5–0 to amend the city comprehensive guide plan for parcels on the former Danfoss campus, changing 40.31 acres from industrial flex/tech to mixed use and 17.31 acres from office to mixed use.
The amendment, city staff said, is intended to reflect long‑term city goals for redevelopment, housing and destination retail and to communicate that vision to potential buyers and developers.
Julie, planning staff, told the council the site has been a legacy employer since the 1960s and was last used by Danfoss after Eaton. She said the city started outreach in January after Danfoss informed staff it was marketing the property and that the property owner selected a preferred developer. "This presents a unique opportunity for the city to adjust the guiding on this property to continue to meet and maintain goals identified in Aspire 2040," Julie said, citing housing demand and the limited supply of large redevelopment sites in Eden Prairie.
Developer representative Connor McCarthy of United Properties, who said his firm is under contract to buy the site, urged caution. "The site contains viable, high quality industrial assets," McCarthy told the council. He said changing the comprehensive plan sends a signal that existing uses are no longer desired and that could create long‑term uncertainty for tenants and investors; he asked the council to maintain industrial guidance on the western portion of the campus or limit the mixed‑use change to the eastern portion.
City staff and several council members said the comprehensive guide change is a policy‑level statement, not a zoning approval, and that the city remains open to re‑use of the existing manufacturing building if a tenant can be found. "If they can re‑tenant that building ... reuse of that building and the city's commitment to that can be handled through the guiding," Julie said. Staff noted that mixed‑use guidance generally does not include industrial uses as permitted and that a future rezoning or development proposal would be required for specific uses.
The planning commission recommended approval on a 7–1 vote. With the council’s action the city will be positioned to review formal development proposals and any rezoning that follows. Council members and staff said the change is intended to guide future negotiations and reviews, not to foreclose industrial reuse if market conditions support it.