City may buy bldg from state

I first started at the Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer as an intern in the summer of 1996. That would begin six years as a news reporter, sports reporter and copy editor for a small, six-day-per-week daily newspaper in northern Minnesota. I wrote a large range of stories from multiple beats, to features to sports, my favorite being the coverage of the Red Lake Reservation High School basketball team named the Warriors. Here is a collection of my stories from my time at the Pioneer.

July 2, 1996

By Devlyn Brooks

Staff Writer

Originally, the Bemidji City Council voted not to pursue purchasing the regional Minnesota Department of Transportation building on Highway 197 South. But Monday when the Council readdressed the decision on Mayor Doug Peterson's request, members voted in favor of pursuing the venture.

MnDOT received a $9 million bonding package to construct a new headquarters facility south of Highway 2 West and is selling the old structure now that a new facility is assured, Peterson wrote in a memo to the council.

Earlier, when the issue was first addressed, the council voted not to purchase the building because it was determined that it should be purchased by a private interest in order that it be placed on the tax roll.

However, Peterson asked the council to reconsider the decision at Monday's Council meeting because, "in order to insure the highest and best use of the property," the city should purchase the structure so the city was "in a position to control redevelopment of this parcel." He said it would be "wasting an opportunity" to allow the building to be purchased for a less "intense purpose."

Peterson said the council had an opportunity to control what the south entrance to the city would look like in the future if it decided to purchase the land. "I'm sure none of us would like to see this piece of land become a diesel repair shop," he said.

He said negotiating the sale was an extensive process and asked the council to authorize City Manager Phil Shealy and Holmes and Galey to negotiate the acquisition of the building. Holmes and Galey is the consultant that was originally asked for advice and assistance before the Council first voted against considering the MnDOT purchase.

To lessen the financial impact of the purchase, Peterson said, a deal could be worked out between the city and MnDOT for the needed water and sewer additions at MnDOT's new site. The city could provide the work for the water and sewer for a lesser price on the building.

Councilor Gordon Oberg said he agreed with the mayor, but he also reminded the Council that "this is strictly a negotiation."

Councilor John O'Boyle said the concern about how Bemidji's south entrance will look in the future is valid, but he is concerned with who would purchase the MnDOT building.

Peterson said that was exactly the concern his proposal addressed. He said the city could sell the facility to anybody it chooses and have the advantage of placing limitations on what the owner could use it for.

"If the city owns it," City Attorney Alan Felix said, "they aren't forced to sell it to anybody." He said the building would not have to be sold by a bidding process, either. "The city simply has to sell it by ordinance and give the public an opportunity to comment," he said.

This time around, the Council agreed with Peterson and authorized Shealy and the consultants to pursue purchasing the facility.