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Bloomington,
Minnesota. Tourists from all over
the world have visited Bloomington, site of the now famous "Mall
of America," largest shopping mall in the United States, all
indoors, complete with its own amusement park, restaurants,
nightclubs, multiplex cinema, scores of specialty shops (such as
shops featuring: seashells, mounted butterflies and exotic insects,
Wisconsin cheeses, knives of every description, model trains,
educational toys, American art collectibles, Oriental arts and
crafts, all leather clothes, alpaca rugs, sports supermarkets to
name just a few).
Besides the mall, there are plenty
of other commercial and retail outlets, restaurants, hotels, etc.
For outdoors and sports enthusiasts, there is a new and very large
REI outlet, complete with inside restaurant, also in Bloomington
just off Highway 494.
Bloomington is the third most
populous city in the Twin Cities' area after Minneapolis and St.
Paul with a population of over 87,000. The city has been around
since 1858. Building really began in the eastern part of the city,
which is today a working-class neighborhood dominated by rambler
homes on relatively small lots on neatly laid out grid-like streets.
Today there are about 35,000 homes in Bloomington, most of them
dating to before the '70's. Average home sale price is around
$234,000, with average median household income at about $74,000/yr.
Central Bloomington is different
from the eastern part with mostly split-level homes on curving
streets, rather than the grid layout. Western Bloomington is the
more affluent section of the city, located west of France Av.
Bloomington, as a city, is almost completely developed, with very
little residential or commercial land left. The city is
concentrating on providing more housing for elderly and retired
people.
For those renting, nearly a third of
Bloomington housing is rentals.
There is also a lot of natural
habitat in the city. These include several parks and nature areas,
as well as 208 lakes and ponds.
Along the Minnesota River are 14 miles of shoreline, as well as the Nine Mile Creek Watershed
area. Around
Hyland Lake Park Reserve is a beautiful area where many of the
more expensive homes are located and which also features a massive
"Chutes and Ladders" playground for children, the
Hyland Hills Ski
Area and Ski School and is also home to the Minnesota Valley
National Wildlife Refuge Headquarters. This kind of natural terrain
makes up about one-quarter of Bloomington.
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