Decorah council delays bond resolution for new fire station, eyes up-to-$18.8 million ballot question

The Decorah City Council on an agenda item about a resolution to call an election on a general-obligation loan agreement decided not to act and agreed to continue discussion next week, while moving toward ballot language that could allow borrowing up to $18.8 million for a new fire station and related municipal facilities.

City staff presenter Travis, city staff, told the council the engineering consultant ISG evaluated multiple design options for replacing or renovating the current fire station and municipal building, including: a heavy renovation with addition; full demolition and new construction for a combined municipal/fire facility; and separate new buildings for fire and municipal services. He said ISG produced alternative site layouts that place a new, single‑story fire station on the north side of the property to allow uninterrupted municipal operations during construction.

The council was presented cost comparisons: the lowest‑cost option was a remodel-plus-addition serving the fire department only; a single‑story new construction with all services combined ranked next; two separate new buildings (fire and municipal) estimated over $20 million and was the highest cost. Travis told the council construction cost estimates were recently updated upward because of adverse soil conditions on the current site; he said the north side parcel has different soil issues (former riverbed) that would also require geotechnical testing.

Mayor or council members pressed staff about timeline and ballot requirements. Travis said bond counsel confirmed the ballot language can specify an amount “not to exceed” a stated principal (the council discussed increasing the ballot cap so it would not be constrained to the current building address). Council members discussed presenting voters with a clear message — that the ballot would fund a new fire station and a plan to resolve where administrative, parks and recreation, code enforcement and other municipal services will be housed.

Several council members favored pursuing a north‑site fire station that would allow the existing building to remain in service while construction occurs. Council members also asked staff to pursue a potential reuse or land swap involving the Bank of the West (BMO) building on Water Street as a location for administrative and parks functions; staff reported a meeting with BMO representatives who said a lease or land‑sale swap might be possible and that a memorandum of understanding or letter of intent could be feasible before the November ballot deadline if the council pursues that option.

Cost figures discussed during the meeting included a construction estimate of roughly $18.4 million for the combined new facility plan (the “new option 3” in the packet) and a par amount the city would need to post for the bond of about $18.8 million when closing costs and contingencies are included. Council members noted one separate design (two independent new buildings) exceeded $20 million and some councilors said they preferred to keep the ballot cap at or below $18 million; others supported the higher $18.8 million par figure so the city would not need a second election if the BMO or other options proved infeasible.

Council members raised financing and operational tradeoffs: remodeling the BMO building was estimated by staff at about $250 per square foot for a heavy remodel, the BMO building is roughly 14,000 gross square feet with 9,340 square feet of program space for administration and parks, and a hypothetical lease rate for new construction was cited around $20 per square foot (about $180,000 per year for a 9,000‑square‑foot lease). Council members expressed a preference for the community owning an asset rather than long‑term leasing.

Council members also discussed outreach to the rural fire districts that share service responsibility with the city. Staff described a proposed funding approach asking rural trustees for an upfront contribution or an annual payment front‑loaded in the first years of a 20‑year debt service schedule to help reduce the city’s initial levy impact; council members agreed to seek an early meeting with rural trustees.

Outcome: no action was taken on the resolution at this meeting. The council scheduled reconsideration at the next council meeting, with staff directed to refine soil/geotechnical information, continue negotiations or assessments related to the BMO building, and prepare bond/ballot language that would set a “not to exceed” principal amount (discussed at roughly $18.8 million).