Apple Valley is a city in northwestern Dakota County, and a suburb of the Twin Cities. The city’s population in 2020 was 56,374 making it the 17th most populous city in Minnesota. In 2013, Money Magazine named Apple Valley the 17th best place to live in the United States. The area that became Apple Valley was first established in 1858 as Lebanon Township and remained a farming community for nearly a century. In the mid-1950s, residential developments started replacing farmland and continues to grow.

Apple Valley is home to the Apple Valley Family Aquatic Center for a day of family fun with sandy play areas, lazy-river tubing and exciting waterslides. Apple Valley is also famous for the Minnesota Zoo, a nationally recognized zoological garden that houses hundreds of animals from several distinct climatological zones. Collections include an indoor Tropics Trail featuring animals from the worlds rain forests and tropical habitats, the Minnesota Trail with native animals from Minnesota including black bears, wolves, wolverines and an impressive beaver pond.

Apple Valley has six elementary, three middle and three high schools in the city, all operated by ISD196. In addition to the two comprehensive high schools, Apple Valley is home to a magnet school open to 11th and 12th graders, the School of Environmental Studies.

Apple Valley offers an unparallel lifestyle along with smalltown feel and uptown attractions. This community is desirable for its shopping, variety of restaurants and pubs, rolling hills, parks & trails all with convenient access to Interstate 35 and Cedar Ave.