“We’re going to let the voters tell us what direction we move in and how fast we get there,” said Elly DesLauriers, executive director at the park district.

Park Board President Perry Olson said the district conducted an indoor facilities study and found community interest in constructing a new fieldhouse with turf. Olson said the board considered its options to determine how it might add a new facility while maintaining existing amenities, without burdening residents with higher taxes. It concluded a half percent sales tax, accompanied by a reduction in property taxes, is the most logical, feasible and fiscally responsible solution. But whether the park district adopts that option or continues on its current path is for voters to decide, he said.

Working with the City of Minot, the park board placed a measure on a June 3 special election ballot that would impose a half percent sales tax in conjunction with a 12-mill decrease in the district’s general fund property-tax cap.

If approved by voters, the sales tax would take effect this fall. Property owners would see the reduction on their property tax statements that arrive in December.

Submitted Photo A rendering shows activity on a turf field in a fieldhouse that is a Minot Park Board priority project for the future. The board is seeking sales tax revenue to fund facilities.

For the owner of a $250,000 home, the annual savings would be $168.

“So overall, about a 40% reduction in your Minot Park District portion of your property tax in exchange for that half cent sales tax,” DesLauriers said. “In order for them to not see a savings on that average $250,000 home, they would have to spend over $33,000 in taxable sales.”

The tax relief would be on top of the $1,600 tax reduction on primary residences approved by the Legislature. The tax relief legislation places a 3% cap on political subdivision spending growth. Olson said during four of the past six years, the park district was at less than 3% growth, and two of those four years saw a lower tax than the previous year.

“And the growth year over year, averaged out of the park district’s budget, has been less than inflation,” Olson said. “I know that we can say we’ve been fiscally responsible.”

The board plans to replace a 38-mill cap on its general fund with a new cap of 26 mills for at least 20 years. The 20-year guarantee ensures that property taxes won’t just go up again once the sales tax is in place, DesLauriers said.

In addition to the general fund, the park district also has the ability to levy for special funds, such as a building fund, for which the district is levying about 3 mills of its 5-mill limit.

A half percent sales tax for the park district would bring the total sales tax in Minot, including state and county, to 8%.

The park district is estimating $6 million in annual collections from the half percent sales tax.

“We believe that’s a pretty conservative number,” DesLauriers said.

Olson said any growth in sales tax collections that appears sustainable over time could create opportunities to cut property taxes more.

He said the overall tax savings to residents is possible because the plan would shift some of the financial support going to the park district to Minot visitors who use those park facilities, from ball diamonds to ice rinks.

DesLauriers and Olson said existing facilities draw visitors who spend money and generate sales tax revenue at hotels, restaurants and stores.

“As the Minot Park District, we don’t see a piece of that pie,” DesLauriers said. “In this proposal, those facilities that are bringing the people in will now see a piece of that go back.”

“Right now, the Minot Park District is basically funded on the backs of the property owners of Minot,” Olson said, noting the district is more reliant on property taxes than on user fees. “The citizens of Minot basically fund it for everyone, and so we’re trying to alleviate some of that, and at the same time, build something that they’ve told us numerous times is what they want.”

The proposed turf facility would be about 30,000 square feet, with a suspended walking track, meeting rooms and storage space. It is proposed as a stand-alone building, with potential for a concourse to connect with the nearby Maysa Arena in the future.

“Really the goal of that turf space is not only for our user groups but for the general public to use,” DesLauriers said. She noted the Fun Zone set up in the auditorium each winter draws 60-90 children per day on days when it is open. The park district also discovered there is a need for turf after seeing the level of response in 2019 when an ice rink that went down was converted temporarily into turf space.

If the measure passes, the district would begin developing bid documents to go out in the summer of 2026, with construction potentially starting in the fall of 2026. Construction is expected to take about a year.

The sales tax would pay for the bond to construct a turf facility and for operating costs on the Hoeven and Corbett baseball complexes, soccer complex, Roosevelt Park Zoo and Maysa Arena.

If residents vote down the sales tax, plans for a turf facility will not proceed.

“If that’s what voters say, that’s 100 percent fine,” Olson said. The park district would continue to operate as it has been, with an emphasis on maintenance and limited funding for new facilities.

The park board recognizes the need for improvements at existing facilities, such as accessibility improvements at Corbett Field, and the need for maintenance and repairs, including replacing the swimming pool filtration system this year.

“We do have a goal of being more proactive instead of reactive when we can,” DesLauriers said of maintenance. “That’s one of the other things we think the sales tax gives us a little bit more opportunity to do.”

The park district has provided dozens of presentations in recent weeks to educate community members on what the ballot measure entails. Olson said there are reasons for voters to give it serious consideration.

“By citizens voting themselves a 40% reduction in their park property tax, we can do more for them, because we’re going to be generating funds from elsewhere,” Olson said. “We’re going to be able to vote a tax reduction for the citizens of Minot and get new and better facilities and a healthier park district.”

EARLY VOTING

– Wednesday, May 28, through Friday, May 30, and Monday, June 2

– 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

– Ward County Administration Building, first floor

ELECTION DAY

– Tuesday, June 3

– 7 a.m.-7 p.m.

– Armory of the Minot Municipal Auditorium