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Mid Range Alliance seeks long‑term, clarified contract after 45 years on city land
Summary
At public forum Dan Reprovich of the Mid Range Alliance described the organization’s 45‑year partnership with Hibbing, listed users of the shooting range, and asked the council for a fair contract that preserves club‑owned buildings and equipment and provides a longer‑term initial term and automatic renewal language.
Dan Reprovich, secretary‑treasurer of the Mid Range Alliance, addressed the council during public forum on July 2 describing 45 years of operation on city property and asking for a clear, long‑term contract that protects club‑owned buildings, structures and equipment.
Reprovich said the Mid Range Alliance has provided a service at no cost to the city and hosts between 4,000 and 5,000 users per year, including law enforcement agencies, local churches for training, youth trap teams, Northland College and other community organizations. He described volunteer improvements including a clubhouse (replacement cost he estimated at roughly $200,000) and a new entrance gate costing about $35,000, emphasizing the volunteer labor behind those projects.
"We are here today to ask the council for a fair, reasonable contract that works for the mid range and the city," Reprovich said.
Reprovich told councilors the group is concerned about language in the proposed agreement that would require transfer of buildings and equipment to the city at the end of the agreement. He said that if the clubs expected the city to take ownership of those volunteer‑funded assets, the clubs would not have invested in them. Reprovich said the alliance is working through 45 years of records and will provide documentation the city requested.
Council members and staff responded publicly that the city does not intend to remove clubs and that the administration is updating all user agreements for consistency; staff and the city attorney are negotiating contract renewals with multiple user groups. Council asked Reprovich to provide paperwork and asked staff to continue negotiations aimed at an updated agreement that addresses both parties’ concerns.
No formal council action was taken during public forum; the matter remains in negotiation.
