Isantian Article summer 2009

I thought it might be interesting in this issue to look a little closer at who we are as a City. I have used information from the state demographer, U.S. Census and City facts. I also want to highlight some of the great events and groups that make living in Isanti such a joy.

Isanti is approximately 4.4 square miles with 34.54 miles of road, 22 miles of sidewalk and 4.5 miles of trails. We have 8 City parks, a soccer complex, BMX track, Skateboard Park, indoor ice arena, outdoor hockey rink, rodeo grounds, Redbirds baseball and recreational access to the Rum River.

Isanti has grown considerably in the last couple years. In 1970 Isanti had a population of 679, in 1980 it was 858, 1990 1,228 and the 2000 census had us at 2,324. Our current population, per the state demographer, is 5,485 living in approximately 1,550 households, 403 of which are verified rental properties. Our median age is 28 as compared to the county at 35.7 years and the state average of 35.4 years. Isanti’s median household income is $58,419 as compared with $55,802 for Minnesota and $41,994 for the nation as a whole.

Isanti has an estimated 125 employers with over 1,400 employees. Our largest employer has approximately 260 employees. Three of our newest businesses - Isanti Retail Meats on Main Street, Charisma on Highway 5 and Ever Cat Fuels in the Industrial park help to grow these numbers. The City of Isanti currently has 40 employees including the Municipal Liquor Store staff.

I now want to shift to our second topic. Isanti has a plethora of events and activities this summer that make us a destination of tens of thousands of visitors. Our biggest event is the July 9th through July 12th Rodeo/Jubilee Days. The Rodeo is a great fund raiser for our Fire District. To learn more go to www.isantifiredistrict.org. To learn more about Jubilee days and the best parade in the state go to www.isantichamber.com.

Rum River BMX has flourished the last few years. Isanti will be hosting the Land O` Lakes National Trials for the 2nd year in a row. The normal track races bring in over a 100 riders, the National’s bring thousands of racers and spectators to our City. If you get a chance take a look at this new Olympic Sport. To learn more go to www.rumriverbmx.com.

The Isanti Red Birds are a City treasure. The games are free to the public and the quality of baseball is terrific. If you have not seen them play, give it a try. To learn more about the Redbirds and their great start to the 2009 season go to http://hometeamsonline.com/teams/?u=ISANTIREDBIRDS&t=c&s=baseball&p=home

The Soccer complex is buzzing with activity each week during the season. Hundreds of players on game nights and even more during tournaments throughout the summer make Isanti a focal point of soccer talent.

My space is limited so I unfortunately could not cover everything but I wanted to give a brief glimpse of who we are as a City and some of the great things going on in Isanti this summer.

If you have any questions please contact me at george@georgewimmer.com or 763-444-7158 or my cell 763-442-8749.