Lakeland Shores
Lakeland Shores is a small, mostly residential city with a population of about 355. Fronting the St. Croix River and surrounded by the City of Lakeland, this small community shares the history of Lakeland Township and the Village of Lakeland.
The Village of Lakeland was platted in 1858. Commercial development took place in Shanghai Cooley, near the present interchange of the Interstate 94 bridge from Wisconsin. While the lumbering center of Lakeland grew up around the ferry crossing to Hudson, the land to the south remained rural. Most of what is now Lakeland Shores was once a single farm owned by William and Mary Jones.
In the 1940s the Jones family had the farm surveyed and began selling off 100- to 150-foot lots fronting the St. Croix River on Lakeland Shores Road, which follows the old Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul railroad right of way. Transforming so much land from agriculture to residential uses greatly changed the dynamics of the town and led to a dramatic increase in taxes for the local residents. In protest of the high taxes, and to protect their lifestyle, area residents incorporated their own village, Lakeland Shores, in 1949.
The community has stayed quiet and residential. Spread out on 443 acres between the river and County Road 18, the city has no industry or shopping, but is close to those facilities in other cities along the river. There is not even a city hall; the Council holds meetings in Lakeland City Hall.