歪歪漫画

BEMIDJI 鈥� The Bemidji City Council gathered on Monday to tackle a range of pressing issues from the Rail Corridor project to much-needed upgrades at the Beltrami County History Center.

During the meeting, Beltrami County Historical Society Executive Director Emily Thabes gave an update on the status of the historical society sharing a plea for support in upgrading the history center's HVAC system, highlighting the critical need to maintain optimal humidity levels to preserve local artifacts.

鈥淔or a great deal of the year, the humidity is well above that 55% zone as high as 74% and what鈥檚 maybe almost as bad is that it goes down to as low as 14% in the winter,鈥� Thabes explained. 鈥淚t leads to some pretty significant problems that can lead to mold and we have mold. We cannot repair the damage. Every year that we allow this to continue, the damage will get worse. So whatever damage is there, caused by this or not, we are only going to further the problem.鈥�

She explained that the humidity levels need to stay between 45% and 55% to remain in the safe zone for artifacts.

Thabes expressed the urgency of installing dehumidifiers to mitigate ongoing risks. She said they applied for a grant last year they unfortunately did not secure. She also requested the city's assistance in offsetting the increased electricity costs associated with running these essential systems. This assistance was noted to be outlined in the lease agreement between the city and the historical society.

Mayor Jorge Prince emphasized the city's prior commitment in authorizing the prior approval of a proposal for grant funds to support the HVAC replacement.

鈥淲hen we authorized this grant, there was a match component on behalf of this grant that we committed to,鈥� Ward 2 Councilor Josh Peterson affirmed.

鈥淚t was half,鈥� Prince reiterated, 鈥渟o in essence, we had already committed $130,000 to this project. I鈥檓 not going to back off from that. If we were going to approve it then, I don鈥檛 know what鈥檚 changed and why we suddenly wouldn鈥檛 approve it now.鈥�

This affirmation from the council will give the BCHS the leeway to apply for another grant in hopes of receiving the funding needed to replace the HVAC system.

Next on the agenda, Bemidji City Manager Richard Spiczka led discussions on the long-awaited Rail Corridor redevelopment of the area near Bemidji's downtown by presenting a proposal with Loucks, marking a significant milestone in Bemidji's urban planning efforts.

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After more than a decade of planning and resource allocation, council members discussed funding strategies to move the project forward, with current plans being to have a YMCA constructed on the lot.

Spiczka elaborated on the project's evolution and financial implications along with the extensive staff efforts over the past 11 years, highlighting the need to finalize plans for grant applications to help cover the costs of cleaning up the site.

Spiczka detailed the updated cost estimate from $30,000 to now $80,000 to hire Stoel Rives to write grants at an estimated 170 hours to assist in covering the clean-up and redevelopment costs. He explained that recent adjustments reflected a more accurate assessment based on current data.

One grant is for redevelopment and is due Aug. 1, the other is an environment cleanup grant due Nov. 1.

Council members expressed strong support for advancing the redevelopment. The motion to support the funds to pay for the grant proposals to be written through a contract with Stoel Rives was carried out with a vote of 6-1.

City Attorney Katie Nolting also presented updates on local cannabis regulations during the meeting, urging alignment with county moratoriums to ensure consistency in policy implementation. The council took a step forward with the first reading of an interim ordinance governing the operation of cannabis businesses, reflecting careful consideration amidst evolving regulatory frameworks from the county.

A spirited discussion also ensued over a proposal to allow short-term rentals at Bemidji State University during the upcoming Unicon convention, set to take place from July 14-16 at Sanford Center.

The council considered a request to create an exception to the Bemidji ordinance in the university zone to operate short-term rentals for the duration of the convention.

This adjustment aims to accommodate participants and ensure adequate lodging options during the event. There would likely be approximately 40 people needing assistance with lodging exceptions during the time of the event.

The council passed this motion unanimously, 6-0, with Peterson refraining from the vote due to a conflict of interest from his involvement with the event as Executive Director of Visit Bemidji.