Source: City of Shakopee, "The Dig: Shakopee Gravel Pit" (YouTube, November 10, 2026)
Published: November 11, 2026.
SHAKOPEE, MINNESOTA - Crews are regrading the former Shakopee Gravel pit. It's the first visible step in turning the roughly 140-acre site at Mystic Lake Drive and 17th Avenue East into a new neighborhood with housing, commercial space, and a city park built around a man-made lake.
The City of Shakopee highlighted the work in a new episode of its "The Dig" video series, posted November 10, 2026. According to the city, the pit supplied sand and rock for roads and developments across the area for more than 50 years. Site grading is expected to continue through 2027, and roads and other infrastructure will go in once the reshaped ground has settled.
What's Planned
The city describes the project as a proposed $650 million development with a mix of housing, commercial and office space, plus a city park with large water features. Earlier city figures put the private development value at more than $500 million.
The city's 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report lists plans for:
155 single-family homes
110 attached townhomes
74 detached townhomes
Up to 534 apartments
About 174,000 square feet of commercial space
Roughly 24 acres of open space
The site, south of 17th Avenue East and west of Mystic Lake Drive, also includes a water treatment facility that Shakopee Public Utilities will own and operate. According to the report, the utility bought the Hawkins property within the site in April 2026.
The Park
The city's 2026 to 2030 Capital Improvement Plan lists the park as Eagle Ridge Community Park. It's budgeted at about $3.8 million in total, including $3.5 million for construction, paid for through the city's Park Development Fund. The plan notes that the park depends on the larger development moving forward, since that development generates the fees that pay for it.
On October 6, 2026, the City Council approved a design contract with Confluence to turn the park's 2024 master plan into detailed design and construction drawings. Features under consideration include trails around the lake connecting to nearby neighborhoods, a playground, a splash pad, a canoe and kayak launch, a sledding hill, a four-season warming house and pavilion, and a dock and skating area. Those features still have to go through design review, and no opening date has been announced.
What Residents Will Notice
For now, the main change is earthmoving on the site. Nearby residents and drivers on Mystic Lake Drive and 17th Avenue East can expect grading to continue into 2027 before street and utility construction begins.
The city said it will keep posting updates as work progresses. More information is available at shakopeemn.gov.
Written by: Bradly Patton
Edited by: Will Wight
Source: City of Shakopee, "The Dig: Shakopee Gravel Pit" (YouTube, November 10, 2026): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TG_u1Rueu_Q
