City backs funds for arena floor

Published 10:44am Tuesday, June 7, 2011
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The Fergus Falls City Council approved the first of several expected improvements to the community ice arena made possible by an Otto Bremer Foundation grant, but it was not without protest from a few council members.

The council approved the installation of a concrete floor in the practice rink at the arena, an addition once planned but then abandoned as being too expensive. After the school district received the Bremer grant, the fundraising committee made the concrete floor its first priority.

When City Engineer Dan Edwards spoke to the fundraisers last week, he said, it seemed likely that they would have newly pledged funds to raise half of the $83,000 required to install the concrete floor. The grant would match the other half.

Unfortunately, he explained on Monday, “They do not have the signed pledges yet on hand. They have the full support of the fundraising committee, and they do believe they will be able to raise the money necessary to match the grant dollars, not only for the practice floor but for the other items (they hope to add).”

Edwards recommended that the council vouch for the money instead until the pledges can be made. The reason, he said, was because the arena needs to continue to move on schedule if it hopes to open by its tight deadline of October. Right now, the contractor is building its schedule around the possibility of a concrete floor.

“We don’t want to put any crinkles in the schedule if we can help it,” he said.

Alderman Eric Shelstad spoke in favor of approving the expenditure for the floor.

“If we don’t do this, that practice rink is not going to happen,” he said, later adding, “I’m fairly confident that the fundraisers will come through.”

Opposing the measure were Scott Rachels and Randy Synstelien, both of whom wanted cash on hand before the city committed additional dollars.

“I don’t want to be so quick to offer up taxpayers’ money as the backdrop instead of the fundraisers’,” Synstelien said.

Rachels agreed, saying that the city is responsible for the money if the expenditure is passed, whether the fundraisers end up paying for it or not.

Jay Cichosz and Pat Connelly also expressed their trust in the fundraisers. The measure ended up passing 5-2, with Synstelien and Rachels voting no. Alderman Jim Fish was not present.

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Comments
  1. June 7, 2011 at 12:47 pm <Link>

    What a deal, I just bet Jim Fishes paycheck will still be present on payday

  2. Pam Carlson June 7, 2011 at 2:03 pm <Link>

    Dan Edwards needs to go, he is causing all tax payers more than we can afford, and the council are his puppets. Building the ice arena should never have started until the $3 million was raised at the very least. Very little has been collected, and very little is likely to be reality. False promises are not worth the paper they are written on. This artical says the extra floor is the “first of several expected improvements” to the “ice arena”. This whole thing has been shady. adding here and there bbringing the price even higher this no end in sight. Not only the council needs replacing, some city employees need to be gone also. It is impossible to sell a house with all the spending and extra taxes. Nobody wants to move here as was promised before the school and ice palace were started. We have not heard the end of this price tag.

  3. papergirl June 7, 2011 at 2:30 pm <Link>

    Maybe it is time for the fundraisers to put their money where their mouth is. Come on people, pony up! Show us exactly how much you have and not just numbers on a piece of paper. Show me the money!!!!!!!!!!!

  4. Dave Adams June 7, 2011 at 6:16 pm <Link>

    Dan Edwards has very few goals he has actually seen finished. He starts to develop new ‘burbs’ then dumps them for one excuse after another. His figures never ‘jive’ and the council has never called him on it. Projects are left standing, undone and unfinished, or never touched.

    How about fixing the streets we have Dan? Our neighborhood could use some curbs, before the streets are washed away???

    Even downtown, you can see the streets pulling away from the curbs and sidewalks. No repair, no patching, no nothing…

    But a construction company is building the arena, not Dan Edwards. Its the only way anything really gets done. If Edwards were building it, we may never see it finished…..

    BUT—–there is that Sales Tax Increase coming down the road.

  5. June 10, 2011 at 9:30 am <Link>

    perhaps we should consider going back to the tax system that created surpluses again? you know the one that built this country until the GOP came and gave obscene tax breaks to their rich pals, whom were supposedly going to use those breaks to create jobs and strengthen the economy.
    what happened to that part of the bargain?

  6. June 10, 2011 at 9:35 am <Link>

    weren’t we told this arena would be profitable and make money for the community?

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