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Should a new city council feel compelled to support a project that was approved by a different set of elected officials?  Lindstrom City Council found itself facing that dilemma last week on a decision that would either kill a proposed non-profit veterans’ housing  project or extend its viability another year.

Curt Bennett, Greater Minnesota Housing Corporation, requested a year extension to file the final plat and complete various other steps on a new eight-home neighborhood called “Tingsryd Gardens.”  

The city authorized the project to move forward one year ago.  The final plat has to be accomplished within a year or the whole project goes back to where it began.
 
The plan calls for the city to gift the site, which is currently where the community garden is located.  One benefit for the city is installation by the developer of a standard city street as one of the access points— so that land-locked acres to the south of this site could become accessible.

Bennett said he needs the extension because fundraising is moving slowly.

Recent supply chain inflation impacts everything as well, and he has applied “value added engineering”  to aspects of the project in an effort to reduce costs.

New Lindstrom Mayor Judy Chartrand expressed her opposition to this project because it eliminates a city owned lot that she feels is better suited as future commercial and industrial use.  She said she wants to name a task force soon to analyze “every inch” of city-owned property for its potential to bring down increases in property taxes, due to lack of diversity in the city’s tax base.

Council member Linda Merkel is not new to council and has opposed the project mostly for its location opposite the new fire hall.  She said veterans suffering with PTSD are susceptible to alarms, sirens and noisy trucks taking off at odd hours.  A different location would be better and she also questioned if the project could hold its market value.
 
For this type of project, there is an initial sale to qualifying veterans mandated, but there is no guarantee that veterans will always be owners.  

Plus,  Council member Merkel wanted to see realistic financial support presented by the non-profit GMHC for the effort before she ties up the site for another year, she concluded.

Newcomer Council member Craig Krueger commented that he didn’t feel the two acres involved in this project would “move the needle” either way on overall commercial industrial potential. He was not a strong yes vote or no vote.

Council member Brian Norelius admittedly was on the fence. He said he would “love” this project somewhere else; but later in the lengthy debate he acknowledged a previous council had “set this in motion” and felt council should try to work with the developer.

There was a losing motion to grant the extension requested (fell 2-3)  but a related discussion on directing staff to write up facts to be adopted at the next council meeting,  to justify denial of the extension, ultimately failed 2 yes-3 no.  So, in effect the extension had been rejected,  but an actual denial which would make the project in default, was not in the record.

Newly sworn-in Council member Dave Waldoch tried an affirmative  motion shortening the deadline to finalize the plat,  only to September, which got no second and died. 

Norelius then motioned in favor of the year-long extension and surprisingly, this time it passed 3-2 with Chartrand and Merkel voting no.

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