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East Grand Forks outlines priorities for March 25 legislative action day, highlighting industrial park bonding and enterprise-zone changes
Summary
City staff listed priorities for a March 25 Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities event: a state bonding request for industrial park infrastructure, proposed changes to the Border Cities enterprise zone rules, sales-tax relief for arena construction materials, and local bonding requests including a $2.093M potato research lab and a $6.5M special-education learning center.
Mr. Hutton briefed the council at the Feb. 24 work session on priorities for the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities legislative action day in St. Paul on March 25.
Hutton said the city will continue to push for a state capital bonding request to fund roads and infrastructure in the industrial park and noted prior site visits and committee presentations this past summer. He also recommended the council support proposed modifications to the Border Cities enterprise zone policy, including removing current restrictions that exclude recreation, tourism and hospitality businesses from eligibility—a change that could allow projects such as a planned river cinema to qualify for credits.
Hutton said the border-cities tax-credit appropriation was previously $750,000 per year and that the five regional border cities had asked to double the amount in the prior biennium; given the state’s constrained budget, he said this year’s effort would focus on modifying eligibility rather than seeking a larger appropriation.
Other priorities Hutton listed included pursuing refund or exemption of sales tax on construction materials for arena projects and supporting local partners’ bonding requests: a Minnesota Department of Agriculture research lab renovation request of $2.093 million for a local potato research lab and a $6.5 million school district request for a special-education learning center.
The mayor raised the idea of reintroducing a proposal to return marijuana sales tax revenue to cities and said city representatives have discussed the issue with state legislators. Hutton encouraged council members and staff to attend the March 25 event and suggested the trip is useful for meeting legislators and advocating for these priorities.
The work session record notes this briefing and a call for attendance, but it does not show formal council action to adopt a legislative platform during the meeting.
