Victoria MN Newspaper

MAIN STREET BUILDING WILL HAVE PARKING

WHEN EXISTING CITY HALL IS DEMOLISHED

Council voted 5-0 to approve a conditional use permit for off-site parking for the construction of a commercial building as submitted by Hartman Brothers. It is to be known as the Main Street Building.

Holly Kreft, Community Development Director, said that 23 parking spaces are being provided but only 18 are required. Those parking spaces won't be provided until the existing City Hall is demolished.

Asked Councilmember Joe Pavelko, "Is the Hartman building being constructed prior to this building [existing City Hall] being demolished?"

"No," replied Holly. It was pointed out that ensuring parking spaces at this time helps in acquiring financing and tenants.

Hartmans are proposing to construct a two-story office/retail building with 5,880 square feet on the main floor and 5,880 square feet on the second floor, on Victoria Drive next to the Post Office. It is not to be confused with their Lakeside office/retail building currently under construction on Stieger Lake Lane.

In the meantime, at their April 27th meeting, Council accepted bids for the demolition of the city-owned Ruth Johnson home on Victoria Drive and awarded the demolition to low bidder THN Enterprises, Excelsior. Their low bid was $12,250. The other two bids were $14,500 and $19,500.

Said City Manager Don Uram, "I think it's a good bid. We have already done the asbestos abatement. The next step is remove trees and prepare for demolition. Tonight the Fire Department is in training there. They'd be happy to show you that experience from a training perspective. It's a Search and Rescue. They put smoke in the building and go from there. The house is scheduled to be removed the week of May 19th."

The property was purchased by the City of Victoria exactly one year ago (in May 2013) for $182,000 to make way for continued downtown redevelopment. It's the site for the new Main Street Building.

TRAIL EASEMENT AT THE APPLE FARM

HELPS VICTORIA IKE BOTH EAST AND WEST

Council voted 5-0 on April 14th to authorize the execution of a License Agreement and Temporary Construction Agreement with the University of Minnesota for construction of the Victoria Regional Trail and Arboretum Connection.

Last year the University required $61,000 from the City of Victoria for a trail easement across its Apple Farm, which is located in Victoria at the intersection of Hwy 5 and Rolling Acres Road. Through negotiation, that amount was reduced to $20,000 in cash in 2013 plus an acre of city-owned land at Lake Tamarack. Now, in 2014, the University is providing the easement to the City of Victoria at no cost or land dedication.

Said Councilmember Jim Crowley, "We had a deal that was significantly negative for Victoria. What happened? I'd like to know what happened."

"This is a fascinating development," said Councilmember Tom Strigel.

They looked to Councilmember Joe Pavelko for an explanation. "It seems to me there was a miscommunication," he said. "After looking at some legal documents, I think the City and the University came out at a better deal. That trail is a very nice asset for the City and the University. They [the University] used public dollars to buy that property. There are strings on land when you buy it. This plot had different strings on it. I learned that by looking at different documents."

Said City Manager Don Uram, "The University made an exception in this case but can't expect it in the future."

When completed, Victoria residents -- and others -- can bike or hike east to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum or west to beautiful downtown Victoria.

Overall construction cost of the trail connection is now projected to be $320,000. The City of Victoria received a DNR grant of $150,000 toward that cost. According to Mr. Uram, "It is anticipated that the trail will be constructed this summer with completion by early August." Low bidder was Minnesota Dirtworks out of Burnsville.

KUDOS TO KENNEDY AND GRAVEN

ATTORNEY MIKE NORTON PREPARES TO RETIRE

Councilmembers gave a unanimous vote of confidence to its longstanding city attorney and consulting law firm of Kennedy and Graven, Chartered, at the end of the city council meeting on April 14th.

On a three-year cycle, the City of Victoria sends out RFPs (Requests for Proposals) for its various consulting services such as legal, engineering, and financial. Current consultants also vie to retain their position with the city. This year Victoria sought RFPs for legal services.

Click here to continue Kudos.