Putting the Northfield Public Safety Center Project Back on Track

The plans to put the proposed project on a track toward becoming reality at tonight’s regular meeting.

Following discussions at , councilors are expected to “make policy decisions on the Public Safety Center budget and financing, site location and type of facility,” says a memo from City Administrator Tim Madigan.

That could be a tall order, considering the number of remaining questions, which include:

• Where to put the facility—The city has identified five potential sites, including the current Minnesota Department of Transportation snowplow garage adjacent to the intersection of Woodley Street and Hwy. 3 that might not be available for another year.
• How the facility should be built—Basically, the question here is whether to house the police and fire departments in one structure or to built separate stations for each department.
• Whether the current safety center, at the intersection of Hwys. 3 and 19/Fifth Street, should be reused. The center, says city officials, is outdated, and the building is within the Cannon River floodplain. If renovated, the center could house the police department.
• How much to spend—The project, as proposed, would cost $10.7 million, with most of the dollars coming from bonds to be paid for by city taxpayers. The taxpayer share could be reduced by contributions from the and and colleges, and by withdrawing money from several city department funds. Last week, Madigan said the size of the project could be reduced now to lower costs, but the facility site should need to be large enough to handle an expansion.

What might complicate tonight’s decision-making process is an offer from former Ryt-Way Packaging owners Glen and Kay Hasse to sell the company’s former warehouse on Armstrong Road to the city for $1 if used for a “public purpose.”

In a letter from Northfield resident Jerry Anderson that appears in the information packet for tonight’s meeting, Glen Hasse and Anderson met Sept. 20 at the building to discuss the offer. Anderson, involved in safety center discussions through his role in the Northfield Rural Fire Association, outlined potential use for the building as a safety center.

“I did suggest the only possibility that might exist is for the city to accept his gift and use a large portion of it for the police department,” Anderson says in the letter. “While there is some concern that the police need also to be on Highway 3, this facility would offer more affordable space with unquestioned ability to expand to the police department needs in the future and other city needs.”

WANT TO GO TO THE MEETING?
WHEN: 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 4
WHERE:
WHO: Open to the public