Woodbury, Minnesota

Woodbury is a city in Washington County, Minnesota, United States, and is a suburb of the Twin Cities metropolitan area. It is situated east of Saint Paul along Interstate 94. The population was 61,961 at the 2010 census.

History
Woodbury was originally named Red Rock, but was renamed Woodbury after Levi Woodbury, the first justice of the Supreme Court of the United States to attend law school, realized that another Red Rock existed in Minnesota. When first settled in 1844, the land was mostly wood but was converted to farmland. The township government was organized in 1858, and the first town hall built in 1876.

The first suburban housing development began in 1955, and the city has seen an increasing level of metropolitan expansion as the farmland has given way to developments and shopping malls.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 35.6 square miles (92.2 km²), of which, 35.0 square miles (90.6 km²) of it is land and 0.6 square miles (1.6 km²) of it (1.74%) is water. The city is bounded on the northern side by I-94, the south by 60th St., the west by Century Avenue, and the east by Manning Ave. The adjoining cities in these directions are, respectively, Oakdale and Lake Elmo, Cottage Grove, Maplewood, and Afton.

Woodbury is composed of upland between the valleys of the Mississippi River and St. Croix River. Much of Woodbury lies within the watershed of Valley Creek, one of the few remaining trout streams in the Twin Cities area. Valley Creek flows eastwards to the St. Croix River at Afton, Minnesota. The city also contains several small lakes, including Powers, Wilmes, Colby, Carver, and Battle Creek. Battle Creek lake is the source of Battle Creek, which flows westwards to the Mississippi River in Saint Paul.

Economy
The five largest employers located in Woodbury are The Hartford, Woodwinds Health Campus, School District 833, EcoWater Systems, and Assurant. Other important employers include eFunds, Long Term Care Group, Dean Foods/Land O'Lakes, and the Target Corporation. State Farm Insurance was previously a large-scale employer in the city, but the multi-department facility was relocated to Lincoln, Nebraska while retaining a smaller work force at another site in Mendota Heights. There are also many smaller employers, such as the Joint Commission on Allied Health Personnel in Ophthalmology and offices for financial corporations. Many Woodbury residents are employed at 3M, whose headquarters are located a few miles west in Maplewood.

A large portion of the economy is retail. The two largest retail centers are Tamarack Village, near the intersection of Radio Drive and I-94, and Woodbury Village, near the intersection of Valley Creek Road and I-494. Woodbury Lakes, an upscale retail development with an open-air mall layout, was completed in 2006.

Education
Because most of Woodbury lies within the South Washington County School District, the majority of high school students attend either Woodbury High School or the more recently constructed East Ridge High School. However, small portions of the city attend Tartan Senior High School in Oakdale and Stillwater Area High School in Stillwater. Some students attend public schools in other school districts chosen by their families under Minnesota's open enrollment statute.

In November 2006, School District 833 selected an 80 acre site for a third high school, later named East Ridge High School. The site lies between two City-owned properties south of Bailey Road and east of Radio Drive: the 80 acre Bielenberg Sports Center and the Danner gravel pit. The City also owns an additional 80 acre south of the sports center to allow for expansion. The new school opened in September 2009. The students attending this new High School came from Woodbury and nearby Cottage Grove as well as Newport and Saint Paul Park. Aaron Harper now serves as the school's principal. For more details on the new High School visit the school's website : http://www.sowashco.k12.mn.us/ERHS

There are two middle schools in Woodbury, Lake Middle School and Woodbury Middle School. Todd Hochman is the principal at Lake Middle School and their mascot is the "Leopards." Dennis Roos (2008) was the principal, now he is assistant principal at East Ridge High School in Woodbury. Kari Lopez (2009) is the principal and Keith Burcar is the Assistant Principal at Woodbury Middle School and their mascot is the "Wildcats."

Woodbury is also home to the Minnesota Math and Science Academy, a charter school.

Globe University/Minnesota School of Business, a for-profit private career college, offers master's, bachelor's and associate degree programs in business, information technology, health sciences and legal sciences at its Woodbury campus.

Recreation
Woodbury contains 45 parks covering 3000 acre and approximately 100 mi of trails. The trails, most of which are paved, connect many of the parks. Three of the largest parks encircle Colby, Wilmes, and Powers lakes, respectively. The indoor Central Park is adjacent to the public library. Bielenberg Sports Center is the primary athletic location, including softball fields, baseball fields, soccer fields, football fields, sand volleyball courts, and an ice arena.

Two golf courses are located in the city: Prestwick (privately owned) and Eagle Valley (publicly owned). There are many local events year-round. A popular summer event named Woodbury Days is held in Ojibway Park each year. Woodbury Days includes a parade, carnival, live music, fireworks, and many booths for the city's shops, churches, and services. Woodbury Days is also known for its Taste of Woodbury tent located in the parking lot behind Woodbury High School and overlooking the Ojibway Park Band Shell. This tent includes many restaurants in the city.

Demographics


As of the census of 2000, there were 46,463 people, 16,676 households, and 12,657 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,327.7 people per square mile (512.6/km²). There were 17,541 housing units at an average density of 501.2 per square mile (193.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 90.04% White, 2.51% African American, 0.24% Native American, 5.01% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.62% from other races, and 1.56% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.14% of the population.

There were 16,676 households out of which 43.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.8% were married couples living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.1% were non-families. 18.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.20.

In the city the population was spread out with 30.6% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 36.9% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 6.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $76,109, and the median income for a family was $84,997. Males had a median income of $60,224 versus $37,676 for females. The per capita income for the city was $32,606. About 0.8% of families and 1.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.2% of those under age 18 and 1.2% of those age 65 or over.