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West St. Paul City Council wrestled to prioritize major capital projects over the next decade, including a needed fire station, police headquarters, pool, and more.
Capital Improvement Planning
City Council spent substantial time during the Open Council Work Session (OCWS) discussing the priority of various major improvement projects over the next 10 years. These included streets, parks, and city facilities—though the conversation focused on the fire department, police department, and parks.
- Top priority: A new fire station for South Metro Fire quickly became the top priority as City Council focused on the lack of space and safety measures. The police department quickly followed, despite their recent renovation, where they lack staff space and secure evidence storage.
- Next: Then Council focused on the city pool, which needs significant work to remain open. Again, they focused on the cheaper, 25-year plan to replace necessary equipment but not to any major redesign.
- Parks: A series of potential park projects were juggled around as the Council tried to make room in the budget for higher priorities.
- Ice arena: Hockey organizations are pushing the city to expand the ice arena to include a second sheet of ice. Council members were reluctant to consider investment in a facility that’s primarily perceived to be reserved for private use while they weren’t sure how to pay for the more immediate needs of police and fire.
- Bonding: There’s a wide range of estimated costs for these varying projects, depending on what’s included and how they’re accomplished, but City Manager Nate Burkett said the city would have no choice but to issue bonds for the projects.
Other Items on the Agenda:
- Wendy’s: Mayor Dave Napier shared that Wendy’s will open today at 10:30 a.m. He also noted that management will change the interior sign that gave a nod to St. Paul to West St. Paul.
- Audit: The city will reviewed the 2024 audit, which showed no compliance issues and received the highest rating.
- Kennedy Park: The city approved the bid for Kennedy Park renovations, which came in at $332,000, 4% above the estimate. Staff have worked to break out separate pieces of this project to reduce costs and has one more piece to finalize.
- Library: Wentworth Library Manager Stacy Lenarz shared an update on library operations during the renovation.
Engage
- Watch: City Council and OCWS meetings are archived online.
- Learn more: Guide to West St. Paul City Council.
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