Detroit Lakes council adopts assessments and awards contracts for Rosman and 270th Avenue projects

The Detroit Lakes City Council on April 20 voted to adopt proposed special assessments and to award construction contracts for two street and utility reconstruction projects aimed at repairing aging water and sewer infrastructure and extending services to growing areas.

City Engineer John Pratt told the council the Rosman Avenue reconstruction (Willow Street to Reynold Street) will replace an aging 12-inch cast-iron transmission water main, update sanitary sewer to PVC with precast manholes, add storm inlets and replace the sidewalk with a roughly 5-foot boulevard between curb and sidewalk. Pratt said the as-bid project cost is about $1,250,000, with the city covering roughly $784,000 (about 63%) and adjacent property owners bearing about $462,000 (about 37%) through special assessments. He described the assessment methodology as a per‑foot frontage rate for street and sidewalk, plus fixed per‑service charges for water and sewer laterals, and said assessments would be levied beginning in 2027 and spread over 20 years at 5.5% interest.

"We're proposing a street utility reconstruction for a portion of Rosman Avenue," Pratt said in his presentation, summarizing the sewer, water, storm and sidewalk work the project will include. No members of the public spoke during the Rosman hearing, and the council adopted the assessment resolution and then voted to award the construction contract to CNL Excavating.

The council then opened a hearing for a smaller 270th Avenue project — roughly an 800-foot extension south from the edge of Southshore Park — where Pratt said there is currently no sewer or water and at least one failing septic system. He described the scope as new 10-inch sanitary and 12-inch water mains with service laterals and the extension of a 40-foot urban street with curb and gutter; estimated project cost came in just under $900,000. Because this is a new sewer and water extension, Pratt explained that the city assesses 100% of standard water and sewer main and lateral costs and 50% of a standard street, with the stormwater utility funding storm work.

During the 270th Avenue hearing, resident Jay Hansen of 2111 270th Avenue asked the council to pick up the full cost of water and sewer mains because property owners were required years earlier to install wells and septic systems. "I appreciate the reduction that John mentioned," Hansen said, asking the council to consider city funding for mains where residents previously installed septic systems. Pratt and council members responded that policy and assessment rules distinguish replacement projects from new extensions, and that some assessment relief and deferral policies exist for qualifying homeowners (age, disability, active duty, homestead and income qualifications).

Council members ultimately endorsed a modified assessment calculation for the 270th Avenue project that shifted roughly $78,000 to the city's share (reducing typical assessed amounts by about 15–18% compared with the bid-based calculation). The council voted to adopt the modified assessments and awarded the 270th Avenue construction contract to Ryan Excavating.

Both projects will proceed to contract administration and pre-construction notifications to affected property owners; Pratt said construction would likely begin this summer pending contract award completion and permit work. Property owners who receive assessments may prepay all or part of the charge to reduce interest, and certain owners may apply for annual deferral under the city's policy.

What happens next: staff will post assessment details and project schedules on the city's project webpages and issue pre-construction notices to adjacent residents when contractors are mobilized.