CIRCLE PINES, MN REALTOR · LOCAL GUIDE
LIVING IN CIRCLE PINES
Circle Pines has one of the more interesting origin stories in the Twin Cities. In 1945, a former banker named V.S. Petersen proposed a cooperative village, and in 1946 the Circle Pines Development Association laid out a 1,203-acre community where homeowners held shares in the cooperative and homes faced parks and walkways. The name comes from the cooperative movement’s symbol of a circle around two pine trees. The co-op model was dropped within a few years, and Circle Pines incorporated as a village in 1950 — but the city still operates its own natural gas utility, the only suburban city in Minnesota that does.
Today about 5,000 people live in Circle Pines’ roughly two square miles, with oak and elm trees and wetlands covering about a third of the city. Golden Lake and Golden Lake Park are the center of community life — the park hosted the city’s 75th anniversary celebration in 2025 — and Rice Creek flows through town. The Rice Creek Chain of Lakes Park Reserve, with its beach, campground, trails and Chomonix Golf Course, extends into Circle Pines and neighboring Lino Lakes.
Circle Pines shares police services with Lexington and Centerville through the Centennial Lakes Police Department, and it’s home to Centennial High School. Lake Drive (County Road 23) is the main route through town, and I‑35W runs right along the city, so downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul are usually 20 to 25 minutes away outside of rush hour.
The housing stock includes some of the original post-war cooperative-era homes along with later neighborhoods, which gives buyers a range of styles and price points in a small, walkable city. Because so much of the city is parkland and wetland, many streets back up to green space, and that can make a real difference in what a home is worth.
CIRCLE PINES AT A GLANCE
Population: 5,025
Size: 2.0 sq mi
Incorporated: 1950
Schools: Centennial ISD 12
Lakes: Golden Lake
Commute: I-35W · Lake Drive
County: Anoka
Known for: City-owned gas utility
Drive to MSP Airport: about 35 minutes (25 miles), off-peak
Drive to Downtown Minneapolis: about 25 minutes (16 miles), off-peak
Drive to Downtown St. Paul: about 25 minutes (18 miles), off-peak
CIRCLE PINES SCHOOLS
All of Circle Pines is served by Centennial Schools (ISD 12), which also covers Centerville, Lexington and parts of Blaine and Lino Lakes. Centennial High School is located right in Circle Pines, and Centennial Middle School is in neighboring Lino Lakes. Because the entire city sits inside a single district, every Circle Pines address feeds into the same Centennial schools. Having the high school right in town keeps games, concerts and activities close to home, and Centennial Community Education offers classes and activities for kids and adults throughout the year.
What the percentages mean: the percentage beside each school below is the share of Circle Pines’s children of that school’s age who live in its attendance area — ages 5–10 for elementary, 11–13 for middle and 14–17 for high school (about 387, 167 and 260 children in the 2020 Census). District percentages use all children ages 5–17. It shows where the city’s kids are assigned; it is not a test score or a rating. Students per grade is each school’s 2025–26 enrollment divided by the number of grades it serves.
School districts serving Circle Pines: Centennial (ISD 12) — all of the city’s school-age children.
HOW CIRCLE PINES’S SCHOOL DISTRICTS COMPARE STATEWIDE
Centennial (ISD 12): reading 57% and math 57% proficient on the 2025–26 state tests — test-score rank #48 of 326 Minnesota districts; 4-year graduation rate 92% (class of 2025), #155 of 317
Proficient = share of tested students who met or exceeded Minnesota’s grade-level standards (MCA, MTAS and Alternate MCA, all tested grades). Test-score rank = position among Minnesota school districts (charter schools not included) by the average of reading and math proficiency; school ranks compare each school with all Minnesota public schools at the same level. Ranks are calculated by Minnesota Chuck from Minnesota Department of Education data and are not an official state rating.
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS SERVING CIRCLE PINES
Golden Lake Elementary: Centennial (ISD 12) — about 39% of Circle Pines’s children that age; grades K–5, about 64 students per grade; reading 55%, math 62% proficient (2025–26), #258 of 893 Minnesota elementary schools
Centennial Elementary: Centennial (ISD 12) — about 36% of Circle Pines’s children that age; grades K–5, about 76 students per grade; reading 54%, math 58% proficient (2025–26), #303 of 893 Minnesota elementary schools
Blue Heron Elementary: Centennial (ISD 12) — about 26% of Circle Pines’s children that age; grades K–5, about 115 students per grade; reading 61%, math 66% proficient (2025–26), #173 of 893 Minnesota elementary schools
Rice Lake Elementary: Centennial (ISD 12) — under 1% of Circle Pines’s children that age; grades K–5, about 111 students per grade; reading 74%, math 81% proficient (2025–26), #25 of 893 Minnesota elementary schools
MIDDLE SCHOOLS SERVING CIRCLE PINES
Centennial Middle School: Centennial (ISD 12) — all of Circle Pines’s children that age; grades 6–8, about 535 students per grade; reading 53%, math 47% proficient (2025–26), #88 of 264 Minnesota middle schools
HIGH SCHOOLS SERVING CIRCLE PINES
Centennial High School: Centennial (ISD 12) — all of Circle Pines’s children that age; grades 9–12, about 520 students per grade; reading 52%, math 53% proficient (2025–26), #42 of 435 Minnesota high schools; 4-year graduation 95%
Sources: Minnesota Department of Education, School Attendance Areas, SY2025-26; Minnesota Department of Education 2025–26 assessment results and graduation rates (Minnesota Report Card); U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census (children by age, by census block); Minnesota Department of Education 2025–26 enrollment. Boundaries can change, so confirm the assigned school with the district for a specific address.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What school district is Circle Pines in?
Circle Pines is entirely within Centennial Schools, Independent School District 12. Centennial High School is located in Circle Pines, and Centennial Middle School is in neighboring Lino Lakes. Because the whole city is in one district, you don’t have to check boundary lines when comparing homes in town.
What county is Circle Pines in?
Circle Pines is in southern Anoka County, in the Northeast Metro. It borders Lexington, Lino Lakes and Blaine, and it’s a few minutes from Centerville. Shoreview and North Oaks in Ramsey County are just to the south, and I‑35W runs right along the city’s west side.
How far is Circle Pines from Minneapolis, St. Paul and MSP Airport?
Driving from the center of Circle Pines at off-peak times, downtown Minneapolis is about 16 miles (roughly 25 minutes), downtown St. Paul is about 18 miles (roughly 25 minutes) and MSP Airport is about 25 miles (roughly 35 minutes). Rush-hour traffic adds time, and drives vary with which part of Circle Pines you start from.
Why does Circle Pines have its own gas utility?
Circle Pines was founded in the 1940s as a planned cooperative village, with residents sharing ownership of homes, businesses and utilities. The cooperative structure ended within a few years, but the city-owned natural gas utility remains, and it also serves parts of neighboring Lino Lakes.
Is Circle Pines a good place to buy a home?
Circle Pines offers a small, established city with Golden Lake, access to the Rice Creek Chain of Lakes Park Reserve, one school district (Centennial) and quick I‑35W access. Homes range from post-war originals to later neighborhoods. I live next door in Centerville and can help you compare homes and price them accurately.
NEARBY CITIES I SERVE
Lexington · Lino Lakes · Blaine · Centerville · North Oaks · Mounds View · Arden Hills · Hugo · Ham Lake
Thinking about buying or selling in Circle Pines? Use the form at the top of this page, or call or text me at 763-218-2573. — Chuck Glasser, Realtor®, RE/MAX Results