| Forest Lake, Minnesota | |
| Settlement Type: | City |
| Motto: | As Good As It Sounds |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Minnesota |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Washington |
| Government Type: | Mayor–council government |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Mara Bain (I)[1] [2] |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Established Date: | March 11, 1874 |
| Established Title1: | Incorporated |
| Established Date1: | 1896 |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [3] |
| Area Total Km2: | 92.01 |
| Area Land Km2: | 79.10 |
| Area Water Km2: | 12.92 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 35.53 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 30.54 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 4.99 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Est: | 20857 |
| Pop Est As Of: | 2022 |
| Population Total: | 20611 |
| Population Density Km2: | 260.58 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 674.91 |
| Timezone: | Central (CST) |
| Utc Offset: | –6 |
| Timezone Dst: | CDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | –5 |
| Elevation Ft: | 935 |
| Coordinates: | 45.2536°N -92.9583°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP code |
| Postal Code: | 55025 |
| Area Code: | 651 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 27-21770 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 2394789 |
| Blank2 Name: | Sales tax |
| Blank2 Info: | 8.375%[4] |
Forest Lake is a city in Washington County, Minnesota, United States, located 27 miles northeast of Saint Paul. The population was 20,611 at the 2020 census.[5]
Forest Lake began as a stop on the St. Paul and Duluth Railroad. The first train reached Forest Lake on December 23, 1868. The lake was so named for the abundant timber that lines its shores.[6] Forest Lake Township was organized on March 11, 1874. The first one-room school was built that year at the former location of city hall (220 N. Lake Street). The city of Forest Lake was incorporated on July 11, 1893 with 175 residents. In 2001, the city annexed the surrounding former Forest Lake Township.[7]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 35.54sqmi; 30.56sqmi is land and 4.98sqmi is water.[8]
Median household income for 2017 was $76,904. Average household income was $93,296. Per capita income was $35,334.
As of the census of 2010, there were 18,375 people, 7,014 households, and 5,044 families residing in the city. The population density was 601.3PD/sqmi. There were 7,508 housing units at an average density of 245.7/sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 94.7% White, 1.1% African American, 0.4% Native American, 1.5% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.6% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.3% of the population.
There were 7,014 households, of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 28.1% were non-families. 21.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.04.
The median age in the city was 37.4 years. 26.3% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 27.1% were from 25 to 44; 27.7% were from 45 to 64; and 11.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 49.7% male and 50.3% female.
Forest Lake is located in Minnesota's 6th congressional district.
The Forest Lake Area school system includes eight elementary sites, one middle school site, and one high school site.[10] There are also two independent districts, North Lakes Academy and Lakes International Language Academy.
The first newspaper, The Enterprise, was printed in 1903. It was changed in 1907 to The Forest Lake Advertiser and later to The Forest Lake Times,[11] in 1916, as it remains to this day. The Forest Lake Lowdown is another local paper.[12]