×

City opts to sell Walders house

Jill Schramm/MDN The Minot City Council has decided what to do with the house at 338 Walders Street. The house will be auctioned.

A house the city has owned for a just over two years will be going back on the market.

The Minot City Council voted Monday to auction the house at 338 Walders Street, purchased in November 2015 with property the city sought for a gateway to a future greenway behind a proposed flood wall. The house was considered for a flood museum/visitor’s center at the time.

The city paid $245,000 for property that included the house. The proposal is to auction the house and move it, leaving the land in city ownership. There is no timeline for the auction, though, and the city has indicated it will not put the house up for sale immediately.

The house is lived in by AmeriCorps VISTA workers who will continue to assist the city with resilience projects through March. The house stands just east of the northern foot of the Broadway Bridge.

“I am for moving forward now and kind of cutting our losses on this,” council member Shannon Straight said. “I just think we need to get this out of the way. I wish there was a better solution.”

Jill Schramm/MDN Renovations at the 1 North Main building were approved for Renaissance Zone tax incentives by the Minot City Council.

In other business, the council approved a Renaissance Zone tax abatement for 1 Main St. N., the original First National Bank building on the northwest corner of the Main-Central intersection. Capital Financial Services occupies the second and fourth floors.

The third floor was converted from apartments into office space and the north exterior wall was reconditioned to maintain the look and integrity of the original wall. The project provided more office space for Capital Financial Services as well as beautifying the downtown area with the exterior restoration.

The tax incentives include a five-year property tax exemption and a five-year business investment income-tax exemption.

According to a memo from the city assessor’s office in 2016, the improvements were expected to add more than $400,000 to the building’s value. The office estimated it would take 13 years of the increased assessment to recover the estimated $76,000 in lost property-tax revenue during the five-year exemption period.

Council member Josh Wolsky said the exterior work clearly fits the goals of the Renaissance Program in restoring an old building. He questions whether some of the other work, although it meets program requirements, truly is the type of improvement that should be part of the program.

Wolsky said he plans to attend a discussion on Renaissance Zones at a legislative interim committee next week.

“This particular application I am going to be supporting tonight because I think very much it meets the letter of the law. I am not as convinced it meets the spirit of the law,” he told the council. “I am going to be fowarding this down to the chairs of that interim taxation committee so legislators can see this example and make a determination one way or another if the Century Code needs to be changed.”

Also during Monday’s meeting, Mayor Chuck Barney discounted comments being made on social media that portray city staff in a bad light.

“I never met a more dedicated staff,” Barney said. “These people genuinely are concerned about the city and they are doing a very good job.”

Wolsky echoed the mayor.

“I have been a outspoken critic of many of the decisions that have come out of the city in the past, but at no point have I ever been worried about the commitment that our staff members have for the city. They are doing the best job that they can do,” he said.

City Manager Tom Barry updated the council on the National Disaster Resilience Program, including the family shelter project. In advertising for proposals, the city received no offers from groups interested in running a shelter. The shelter advisory group will be looking at other options for launching the project.

The council also approved a zone change on second reading for the Northridge Villas’ 35-lot project in northwest Minot, allowing the housing development to proceed. The project has been controversial with neighbors.

Council member Stephan Podrygula voted against approval, citing continued reservations about the development. Although the project has positive elements, including a proposed park area, Podrygula said, he believes the design will be congested and will change the character of the area.

“It just isn’t the right place for it or the right way to develop this particular piece of land,” he said.

In other action, the council approved a joint powers agreement between the city and North Dakota State Board of Higher Education to facilitate an appropriation of $1 million from sales tax in the Community Facilities Fund for replacement of Minot State University Dome seating. The appropriation is contingent upon MSU raising $500,000.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today