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Center City officials are considering buying the county’s Heartland Express building, near the Bayview Senior Apartments, to accommodate the city’s growing need for storage and operations.

The county is considering consolidating its public transit hub to North Branch, and would likely list the property in Center City at its current market value of $160,000, according to city staff.

Officials at a monthly council meeting Nov. 5 discussed other costs  for repairing the building’s roof along with improvements for making the building code-compliant and accessible for persons with disabilities. (See photo below.)

Council appointed members Lloyd Vetter and Scott Anderson to form a committee, with City Engineer Les Mateffy and Zoning Administrator Jack Kramer, for further review of the structure.

Mayor Jill Behnke said she has been taking a grant writing class, and that she would be willing to help the city apply for grants which would be available for accessibility improvements if the city pursues an acquisition.

Behnke declined to seek re-election as mayor of Center City for the coming term, and ran for a seat on the Chisago County Board, unsuccessfully challenging Commissioner Lora Walker.

Behnke noted that she joined the council before her election as mayor, and she said she has enjoyed her service to the city.

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