Edina, Minnesota Totally Explained

Everything about Edina Minnesota totally explained

Edina is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and a first-ring suburb situated immediately southwest of Minneapolis. Edina began as a small farming and milling community in the 1860s and is today a 95 percent developed metropolitan community.

Geography

Many major highways run through or are close to Edina, making it readily accessible to all within the metropolitan area. Minnesota State Highways 62 and 100 divide the City into four sections. U.S. Route 169 and Minnesota State Highway 100 extend north and south. Interstate 494 and Minnesota State Highway 62 extend east and west. Minnesota State Highway 7 is within three miles (5 km) of the city. Interstate 394 is within five miles.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 41.5 km² (16.0 mi²). 40.8 km² (15.8 mi²) of it's land and 0.8 km² (0.3 mi²) of it (1.87%) is water. Residential areas comprise the largest portion of the City, which is now more than 95 percent developed. Within Edina are many different neighborhoods, including Indian Hills, Viking Hills, Morningside, Country Club District, Cahill Village, South Harriet Park, Interlachen, Rolling Green, Parkwood Knolls and Hilldale to name a few.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 47,425 people, 20,996 households, and 12,870 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,162.6/km² (3,011.4/mi²). There were 21,669 housing units at an average density of 531.2/km² (1,376.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.28% White, 1.15% African American, 0.13% Native American, 2.99% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.35% from other races, and 1.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.14% of the population. 21.9% were of German, 14.4% Norwegian, 10.2% Irish, 9.3% Swedish and 8.4% English ancestry according to Census 2000.
   There were 20,996 households out of which 26.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.8% were married couples living together, 5.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.7% were non-families. 34.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 2.91.
   In the city the population was spread out with 22.9% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 26.5% from 45 to 64, and 22.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 84.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.7 males.
   The median income for a household in the city was $66,019, and the median income for a family was $93,496. Males had a median income of $67,011 versus $41,742 for females. The per capita income for the city was $44,195. About 2.0% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 2.8% of those age 65 or over.

Population statistics

Population history
1955	1980	1990	1994	1996	1998	1999	2000	2002
17,000	46,073	46,075	46,841	47,029	47,113	47,274	47,425	47,570

Estimate

History

Settlement

Edina began as part of what is today the City of Richfield, Minnesota. In the 1850s, 17 families, most of them immigrating as a result of the potato famine in Ireland, came to Minnesota and claimed land in the southwest section of what was then Richfield Village. They were followed by English and Scottish farmers, who claimed additional land near Minnehaha Creek. The Baird and Grimes and County Club Districts (both which are listed on the National Register of Historic Places), are located in the northeast part of Edina and were among the first areas to be established.
In 1888, the residents of the township held a meeting to consider founding a new village, thus separating themselves from Richfield Village. The idea was favorably accepted by those within the community and a committee was established to oversee the transition.

Naming

After the decision was made to form a new village, a debate ensued regarding the naming of the new village. Several town meetings were held in the Minnehaha Grange Hall, during which the names "Hennepin Park", "Westfield" and "Edina" were suggested. Minutes taken by Henry F. Brown, a farmer and future owner (1889) of the Edina Mill, are summarized as follows:
There has been a prevailing myth about the decision to name the new village Edina, which states that two opposing communities -- the Irish Cahill community and the Scottish Mill community fought about whether to give the community an Irish Name (Killarney Lakes) or a Scottish name (Edina). The 1860 census, however, indicates that there were no Scottish people in Edina in 1860, and only a couple were present at the time of Edina's founding (1888).

Edina today

Today, many of the street names in Edina are named after families whose farms once occupied that area, for example: Grimes Avenue, Code Avenue, Gleason (Gleeson) Road and Cooper Avenue.
Edina has reputation for being one of the Minneapolis’ “ritziest” suburbs. Edina citizens are considered wealthy (for example median household income for 1999 in Edina was $66,019, compared to $37,974 for Minneapolis and $47,111 for the state of Minnesota), which led to the once derogatory term of “cake eaters" (a reference to the “Let them eat cake” quote misattributed to Marie Antoinette). The term is now largely used in jest in regional sports rivalries. Such usage can be seen, for example, in the Disney film, The Mighty Ducks, in which the term is used in reference to the Adam Banks character.
Edina is home to a few billionaires, most notably Richard M. Schulze and Carl Pohlad.

Education

Public schools

� For a detailed article see Edina Public Schools

Edina is part of the Independent School District (ISD) 273

, which serves children primarily from Edina. There are approximately 7500 K-12 students served by 1139 teachers and support staff in six elementary schools (Grades K-5), two middle schools (Grades 6-9), and one senior high school (Grades 10-12). The district administrative offices are located at the Edina Community Center.
Edina High School has been often listed in the top 1 to 100 schools in the United States in academics (most recently in Newsweek, 2007), the top 10 in sports (number 8 in a Sports Illustrated review of over 30,000 schools), the top 15 in debate, the top 40 in music, national awards in writing, and so on. A recent study showed that 100% of EHS students graduate, that 96% of EHS grads go to college and that 85% of Edina High School graduates completed college within 5 yrs after high school graduation. A recent follow-up study showed that ten years after graduation from Edina High School 46% of EHS graduates had obtained advanced postgraduate degrees or were pursuing graduate degrees at the time of the study. The elementary and junior high schools have won many national and state excellence awards. French immersion programs are offered there starting in kindergarten. The high school offers six years of French and Spanish, five years of Latin, Russian, and German, four of Japanese, and three of Chinese and American Sign Language.

Public Schools in Edina
Elementary Schools	Junior High Schools	High School
Concord	South View Middle School	Edina High School
Creek Valley	Valley View Middle School
Cornelia
Highlands
Countryside
Normandale French Immersion

Private schools

There are three private schools in Edina. Our Lady of Grace (OLG), which is a Catholic school that serves students from kindergarten through eighth grade, St. Peters Lutheran School

, and Calvin Christian School

Colleges

Cardinal Stritch University, Devry University, and the Keller Graduate School of Management are located in Edina.

Economy

Shopping

Edina has numerous retail shopping centers, including Southdale Center, which was the first climate-controlled, fully enclosed shopping mall in the United States. Other shopping centers include the Galleria, Yorktown and Centennial Lakes Plaza. The city shares another thriving commercial area at West 50th Street and France Avenue South with Minneapolis, known as "50th & France."
Edina only has municipal liquor stores; no other liquor stores are allowed. Edina maintains three liquor stores at 50th & France, Southdale (York Ave.), and Vernon & Interlachen Blvd.

Hotels

There is just one hotel in Edina, the Residence Inn by Marriott, which is adjacent to Edinborough Park. Another hotel, The Westin Edina Galleria Hotel & Residences, is under construction at 69th Street and York Avenue. It is to be completed by the fall of 2008 and will provide 225 hotel rooms, six suites, and 79 luxury condominiums. The lack of hotels in Edina dates back to the early 1930s when Edina was still officially a "dry" city. There are several hotels in a region several blocks north of I-494; this area was once part of Edina. After successful petitioning, the area was annexed to Bloomington, which allowed alcohol sales at the time.

Recreation

Parks

Edina’s parkland and open space totals more than 1,550 acres (6.3 km²). The Edina Park and Recreation Department oversees 44 parks, which include amenities such as baseball, football and soccer fields; softball diamonds; basketball and tennis courts; outdoor skating rinks; playground equipment for young children; and picnic shelters. The Department also maintains eight miles (13 km) of scenic pathways for bicycling, walking, jogging, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing.

Edina Parks
Alden Park	Fred Richards Golf Course	Rosland Park
Arden Park	Garden Park	Sherwood Park
Arneson Acres Park	Garden Park Addition	St. John's Park
Birchcrest Park	Heights Park	Strachauer Park
Braemar Park (Courtney Fields)	Highlands Park	T. Lea Todd Park
Bredesen Park	Kojetin Park	Tingdale Park
Browndale Park	Krahl Hill	Utley Park
Centennial Lakes Park	Lake Edina Park	Van Valkenburg Park
Chowen Park	Lewis Park	Walnut Ridge Park
Cornelia School Park	Lincoln Drive Floodplain	Weber Field Park
Countryside Park	McGuire Park	Williams Park
Creek Valley School Park	Melody Lake Park	Wooddale Park
Edinborough Park	Moore Property	York Park
Fox Meadow Park	Normandale Park	Yorktown Park
Frank Tupa Park	Pamela Park

Besides overseeing the parks, the Edina Park and Recreation Department is also responsible for the operation of 10 facilities within the city:

Arneson Acres Park

Braemar Golf Courses

Braemar Golf Dome

Braemar Ice Rink

Centennial Lakes Park

Fred Richards Golf Course

Normandale Park

Notable Edinans

The following people were born or have resided in Edina:

Lynsey Bartilson - Actress

Dorothy Benham - Miss America, 1977

Paris Bennett - American Idol Contestant

Leeann Chin- Founder of Leeann Chin Chinese Cuisine

John Denver - Musician and Singer - (There is no mention of Edina in the John Denver entry.)

Julia Duffy - Actress, famous for playing the role of Stephanie on Newhart

Craig Finn - Lead Singer / Rhythm Guitarist of The Hold Steady

Mardy Fish - Professional Tennis Player

Ric Flair - Professional Wrestler

Vince Flynn - Author

Hilary Lunke - Professional Golfer (Won 2003 U.S. Women's Open)

Bill Nyrop - Ice Hockey Player (Three National Hockey League Stanley Cup championships with Montreal Canadiens, 1976-1978)

Barbara Peterson - Miss USA, 1976

Carl Pohlad- Owner, Minnesota Twins

Jenny Potter - Ice Hockey Player (1998 Winter Olympics Gold Medal)

Kaylin Richardson - World Cup Alpine Skier (2006 Olympic Team Member)

Richard M. Schulze - C.E.O. of Best Buy

Paul Westerberg - Leader of The Replacements and major solo artist

Edina in pop culture

The interior of Edina's former City Hall/Police Station building (now demolished and rebuilt) was filmed as the police station in the Coen brothers' 1996 film Fargo.

One of the baseball fields at Countryside Park was used in the opening scenes of the movie Little Big League. The umpire can clearly be seen wearing an Edina Athletic Association shirt.

Several scenes from Jingle All the Way, a Christmas movie featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger, were filmed in an Edina neighborhood near Arden Park.Further Information

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