# Coon Rapids *City in Anoka County, Minnesota* Coon Rapids is a city on the [[Mississippi River]] north of [[Minneapolis]]. The 2020 census counted 63,599 residents there. That count places it second in Anoka County, fifteenth among [[Minnesota]] cities, and seventh among Twin Cities suburbs.[^1] It is a charter city with a council-manager government.[^2] In this record, the city appears in four at-issue pairs. The pairs are drawn from project memoranda dated 2026-09-01. Each concerns land-use application [[PC 26-23]] and its applicant, [[2891 Coon Rapids LLC]], and each is set beside a White House presidential action issued in 2025 or 2026.[^3][^4][^5][^6] Those anchor documents are cited as the pairs' federal reference points. They are not sources for the local facts. The record assembled here does not include the application itself, a lease, a council action on the application, or a court filing.[^3][^6] ## Where The [[United States Census Bureau]] gives the city's area as 23.34 square miles. Of that, 22.61 square miles is land and 0.73 square miles is water.[^7] Cenaiko Lake lies within the city. About two-thirds of Crooked Lake falls inside Coon Rapids, and the remaining third lies in Andover, the city to the north.[^7] U.S. Highway 10, Minnesota State Highway 47 and Minnesota State Highway 610 are among the city's principal routes.[^8] The BNSF mainline between Seattle and Chicago runs through the city. The [[Northstar commuter rail line]] used those tracks to serve Coon Rapids Riverdale Station from its 2009 opening until it closed in 2026, when bus service took its place.[^8] Coon Rapids Boulevard, a commercial corridor, follows the Red River Ox Cart Trail. That trail was laid in 1835 to link Minneapolis and [[Anoka]] for military and trade traffic.[^9] The city council has seven seats. The mayor and one at-large member are elected citywide, and one member is elected from each of five wards.[^2] After the 2025 special election, the city's Minnesota House districts were: - 34B, held by [[Xp Lee]] (DFL) - 35A, held by [[Zack Stephenson]] (DFL) - 35B, held by [[Kari Rehrauer]] (DFL) Its state Senate districts were 34, held by [[John Hoffman (Minnesota politician)|John Hoffman]] (DFL), and 35, held by [[Jim Abeler]] (Republican).[^2] In Congress, the city is in Minnesota's 3rd district, represented by [[Kelly Morrison]], a Democrat.[^2] ## When The first settlers came for Coon Creek. The creek takes its name from the raccoons hunted at its mouth in the nineteenth century.[^9] In 1881, D. C. Dunham founded the Anoka Pressed Brick and Terra Cotta Company. The company's former clay pit is still known locally as the "Clay Hole."[^9] Work on the Coon Rapids Dam began in 1912, and the laborers and engineers it drew raised the population above 1,000 for the first time.[^9] The dam was finished in 1914, which made the city the northernmost navigable point on the Mississippi.[^8] The dam supplied regional power for the Northern States Power Company until 1969. That year it was sold to the Hennepin County Park Board and became part of Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park.[^9] When the dam was built, Anoka Township took the name Coon Creek Rapids, later shortened to Coon Rapids.[^9] The article's History section dates the village's vote to incorporate as a city to 1959. Its Government section gives 1952 as the year of incorporation.[^9][^2] Attempts to change the city's name were made in 1968, 1986, 2006 and 2021. The article attributes these attempts to the word "coon" also being used as a racial slur. Proposed names included Rapids, River Rapids, Creek Rapids and Raccoon Rapids.[^9] The name has not been changed.[^1] ## How many The 2020 census recorded the following figures:[^1] - 24,518 households - 25,144 housing units, 2.5 percent of them vacant - a median age of 38.6 years The 2010 census had counted 61,476 people in 23,532 households.[^1] The same article gives growth from about 14,000 residents in 1959 to more than 62,785 in 2022. That 2022 figure is lower than the 2020 census count of 63,599.[^9][^1] The city is served by Anoka-Hennepin Public School District 11. Coon Rapids High School is the district's largest school in the city, with about 1,935 students projected for 2025–26.[^10] Two charter high schools also operate in the city:[^10] - Paladin Career & Technical High School, in Coon Rapids since 2022, enrolled 299 students in 2023–24. - Northwest Passage High School enrolled 149 students in 2023–24. The record does not identify which school, if any, is the tenant in PC 26-23.[^3][^10] ## In the at-issue record - **AI-Anoka-021 (applicant).** The pair states that the PC 26-23 application was filed by the site's landlord, 2891 Coon Rapids LLC, acting through a commercial real estate investor. It adds that the application was "not by the school." It also states that under [[§ 124E.22]] the tenant's rent is up to 90 percent state-reimbursed. The pair lists three underlying sources: a property-listing site, a news site and the Revisor's statute page. None of these sources is in this pack. Its anchor is the May 2026 presidential action *Restoring Integrity to America's Financial System*.[^3] - **AI-Anoka-086 (public comment).** The pair states that a three-minute comment at the council hearing can end up in one of two places. A comment on traffic counts and lease terms enters the council record, while a comment on religion can enter an applicant's federal complaint. The pair also states that hearing transcripts from [[St. Anthony Village]] became DOJ exhibits. It cites one justice.gov source, which is not in this pack. Its anchor is the January 2025 presidential action *Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity*.[^4] - **AI-Anoka-092 (applicant entity).** The pair cites the [[Feeding Our Future]] record for the proposition that LLCs only days old billed the state for millions. On that basis, it poses the question of who stands behind 2891 Coon Rapids LLC before "a state-reimbursed rent stream" begins. Its anchor is the same May 2026 action.[^5] - **AI-Anoka-099 (council file).** The pair lists the documents a land-use record could rest on: a lease rate, a phasing table and a traffic study. It describes the council's file as becoming "either a model or an exhibit." The pair lists no underlying sources. Its anchor is the March 2026 presidential action *Establishing the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud*.[^6] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *Coon Rapids, Minnesota*, lead and Demographics sections (revision 1378399926, retrieved 2026-10-27) — 2020 and 2010 census population, household and housing figures; current city name. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coon_Rapids,_Minnesota [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *Coon Rapids, Minnesota*, Government section (revision 1378399926, retrieved 2026-10-27) — charter city, council-manager form, seven-member council; state legislative and congressional districts as of 2025; incorporation dated 1952. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coon_Rapids,_Minnesota [^3]: The White House, *Restoring Integrity to America's Financial System* (May 2026) — anchor document for at-issue pair AI-Anoka-021 (memo *FollowTheMoney_LeaseAid_Memo*, 2026-09-01); the pair's statements about PC 26-23 and § 124E.22 rest on the pair's own listed sources, not on this document. https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/05/restoring-integrity-to-americas-financial-system/ [^4]: The White House, *Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity* (January 2025) — anchor document for at-issue pair AI-Anoka-086 (*Public_Comment_3min*, 2026-09-01); the St. Anthony Village statement rests on the pair's listed justice.gov source, not in this pack. https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/ending-illegal-discrimination-and-restoring-merit-based-opportunity/ [^5]: The White House, *Restoring Integrity to America's Financial System* (May 2026) — anchor document for at-issue pair AI-Anoka-092 (*FollowTheMoney_LeaseAid_Memo*, Q4, 2026-09-01). https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/05/restoring-integrity-to-americas-financial-system/ [^6]: The White House, *Establishing the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud* (March 2026) — anchor document for at-issue pair AI-Anoka-099 (*Council_Vote_Brief_FactCheck*, 2026-09-01), which lists no underlying sources. https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/03/establishing-the-task-force-to-eliminate-fraud/ [^7]: Wikipedia contributors, *Coon Rapids, Minnesota*, Geography section (revision 1378399926, retrieved 2026-10-27) — Census Bureau area figures; Cenaiko and Crooked lakes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coon_Rapids,_Minnesota [^8]: Wikipedia contributors, *Coon Rapids, Minnesota*, Transportation section (revision 1378399926, retrieved 2026-10-27) — highways, BNSF mainline, Northstar service 2009–2026, northernmost navigable point after 1914. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coon_Rapids,_Minnesota [^9]: Wikipedia contributors, *Coon Rapids, Minnesota*, History section (revision 1378399926, retrieved 2026-10-27) — settlement, 1835 trail, 1881 brickworks, dam 1912–1914 and 1969 sale, renaming, 1959 incorporation, 1959–2022 population, renaming attempts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coon_Rapids,_Minnesota [^10]: Wikipedia contributors, *Coon Rapids, Minnesota*, Education section (revision 1378399926, retrieved 2026-10-27) — school district, high school enrollment, charter high schools. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coon_Rapids,_Minnesota