Detroit Lakes, Minn. (KDLM) – Members of the Detroit Lakes city council held a work session Tuesday to review the city’s 5-year capital improvement plan, which lays out major projects to be completed within the city limits through 2028, and discuss possible changes to the city’s special assessment policy to give Detroit Lakes residents a break on assessable improvements.
Jon Pratt, city engineer for Detroit Lakes, said, during the last five year period, the city completed nearly $47 million worth of infrastructure, road and multi-use trail improvements. Over the next five years, he said, the city aims to complete just over $79 million in new projects, which will include: two new water tower replacements, various street rehabilitation and utilities extension to the western side of Long Lake.
“We always look at (the 5-year plan map) and ask, are we doing a good job of spreading the improvements around the community and not getting too focused in one area so that maybe residents across the entire community are seeing some level of work being done,” said Pratt., during the meeting. “And I think this accomplishes it. I think, if you look, it’s pretty spread out, so that’s a good thing.”
Detroit Lakes City Council 5-year plan and special assessment policy, June 20, 2023 by Michael Achterling on Scribd
Some of the major projects for the plan include: a $9 million West Lake Drive phase three project from Legion Road to Washington Avenue slated for 2025; a nearly $4 million street and utility reconstruction of portions of Frazee, Holmes and Front Streets, west of Washington Avenue in 2024; and three separate large street rehabilitation projects, totaling more than $8.5 million.
Additionally, the city is planning $6.5 million in improvements to the North Industrial Park and the Tower Road Industrial Park.
To help keep the special assessments costs for Detroit Lakes property owners lower for the upcoming projects, city staff and members of the city council are planning on adjusting the city’s special assessment policy in coming months so the Detroit Lakes Public Utilities fund will cover more of the overall project costs that were typically assessed to homeowners.
The added cost on the public utilities fund may increase the utility bills for all residents, but should save property owners thousands in special assessment costs going forward.
Kelcey Klemm, city administrator for Detroit Lakes, said the assessable costs won’t go away and they need to be covered from somewhere.
“If you don’t want to assess, you’ve got to pay for it somewhere else,” said Klemm. “Just being blunt. If we’re not going to use utility funds to pay for it, it’s gonna have to go on property taxes. There is no other fund out there that is going to pick up those assessment costs. So the idea is having that water and sewer cost for those water and sewer mains built into your rate.”
Under the proposed policy, the water and sewer mains cost for upcoming reconstruction projects, which are currently assessed at 75% cost to the homeowner, will be covered entirely by the city’s public utilities fund. Additionally, the city will begin assessing adjacent property owners for project reconstruction costs for alley work, which had been exempt from the special assessment policy.
Klemm also pointed out the new special assessment changes would only affect reconstruction projects, projects aimed at replacing already existing infrastructure. New utility services and new roads would remain assessable to property owners
Action by the Detroit Lakes city council on the new five-year capital improvement plan and proposed changes to the city’s special assessment policy are expected to be voted on in coming months.
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