We, the residents of the Spirit of Brandtjen Farms, formally object to the proposed development of a Goodwill retail store and donation center in our neighborhood. While we recognize and support philanthropic efforts, a high-volume secondhand retail and donation hub is entirely incompatible with the safety, aesthetics, and design of our family centered residential community. The Spirit of Brandtjen Farms is a peaceful, pedestrian-friendly neighborhood known for its signature historic farm character and active outdoor spaces. Introducing this commercial facility will directly jeopardize the quality of life we have worked hard to build.

We urge the Lakeville City Council and Planning Commission to deny any zoning changes, conditional use permits, or site plans for this project based on the following critical impacts and direct conflicts with established city ordinances:

• After-Hours Dumping and Property Eyesores: Goodwill locations nationwide struggle with rampant, illegal after-hours dumping. When the store is closed, items are routinely piled outside, exposed to the elements, and rummaged through by loiterers. This causes immediate property deterioration and scatters litter into surrounding retail areas. It creates an ongoing eyesore for everyone entering our neighborhood, whether they are local residents or customers patronizing area businesses. This business model inherently creates a recurring public nuisance under Lakeville City Code Section 4-1-5 (Waste), which strictly prohibits accumulating or storing refuse outside of compliant containers—especially when that waste was not even generated on the property. Furthermore, it undermines the fundamental purpose of Lakeville City Code Section 4-1-1, which protects communities from property uses that unreasonably annoy or endanger the comfort, repose, and safety of the public.
  
  
• Dangerous Traffic, Congestion, and Unsupportable Influxes: Our neighborhood is filled with young children, walking paths, and bikers who rely on safe streets. Municipal traffic data and retail industry metrics show that a modern Goodwill is a high-volume, dual-traffic generator entirely different from standard retail. Unlike traditional stores, it demands two simultaneous, continuous streams of vehicles: a constant influx of daily retail shoppers driven by rapid inventory turnover, and a separate, non-stop line of vehicles utilizing donation drop-off lanes. According to data from Placer.ai, thrift stores are experiencing record-breaking, strictly in-person foot traffic spikes, with the national Goodwill network processing nearly 280 million shoppers and 116 million separate donation drops annually. In city planning traffic models (ITE Trip Generation codes), these facilities are classified alongside high-impact discount variety stores. The intersection of Pilot Knob and 160th Street is already severely congested, and the intersection of Eagleview and 160th Street has seen its fair share of severe accidents; adding a large, high-impact retail store of any kind will drastically worsen these conditions. The inevitable lines of waiting vehicles, idling donation lines, and heavy commercial logistics trucks spilling from the site threaten to violate Lakeville City Code Section 4-1-1-C (Obstruction of Public Passage) by introducing high-volume patterns that obstruct or render dangerous our local public streets, lanes, and walkways.
  
  
• Depressed Property Values: The combination of commercial congestion, visible piles of dumped items, and a stark aesthetic mismatch will negatively impact the market value and long-term desirability of homes within Spirit of Brandtjen Farms.

Our neighborhood was intentionally designed to be peaceful and quaint, not a logistical hub for commercial secondhand processing. We demand that our city leadership protect our safety, property investments, and community character by rejecting this proposal.

Sign the petition today to tell the City Council: Protect Spirit of Brandtjen Farms!