Fargodome renovation and expansion plan fails to eclipse 60% threshold in special election

Detroit Lakes, Minn. (KDLM) – A ballot measure for a $140 million Fargodome expansion and convention center failed to pass on Tuesday during a special election.   

To pass, the measure needed 60% approval, but just under 52% of the votes cast were yes. City auditor Steve Sprague said preliminary results show 7,968 ballots were cast. Of those, 4,122 were ‘yes’ and 3,846 were ‘no.’  

Had the measure passed, it would have meant a quarter-cent sales tax increase, and 3% lodging tax increase over the next 20 years.   

Deb Mathern co-chairs Fargodome Reimagined, the committee that pushed for the project. She said there is no “Plan B.”   

Mathern said: “I’m extremely disappointed that people didn’t understand the importance. I think a lot of people just heard the word tax and didn’t think through it or delve any further. At this point, there will not be renovations done to the Fargodome and there will be no convention center. It’s a detriment to our city. We will move backwards while cities like Grand Forks and Bismarck continue to move forward.”

Fargo Mayor Tim Mahoney said the people have spoken.

Mahoney said: “… The fact remains that the Fargodome needs critical upgrades and our community needs a conference center. Right now, we cannot compete with neighboring cities in attracting conferences and conventions that would elevate Fargo’s economy and generate tax revenue. We will regroup and decide next steps over the coming months.”

The election results will be certified on Dec. 18.

Story by Ryan Janke / KFGO

Minnesota MMB forecasts $2.4 billion surplus, but may need increased revenue to offset budget

An updated budget forecast was released on Monday from the Minnesota Office of Management and Budget, showing the state has a projected surplus of $2.4 billion, up $808 million from May’s estimate. 

According to the MMB, the increase is due to higher-than-expected consumer spending, business investment, and employment.

MMB also says, however, higher spending estimates in health, human services, and education between January 2025 and 2027 will lead to a negative balance in the next biennium.

Minnesota is operating on a $72 billion budget passed this spring, which included new statewide benefits like a paid-family medical leave program launching in January 2026 and Minnesota’s North Star Promise, which provides free tuition to Minnesota’s public colleges and universities beginning next fall for students with a household income of less than $80,000.

In an news conference, Minnesota’s Speaker of the House Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, those programs and initiatives passed by the legislature this year are providing a strong foundation for Minnesota’s continued economic success.

“The policies we enacted with Democratic leadership in the House, Senate and Governor’s Office have resulted in economic success and stability,” said Hortman. “Policies like paid-family medical leave, earned sick time, and increased worker protections, whether you work in a warehouse or a refinery, gave workers the peace of mind they need to choose to participate in the workforce. These recently enacted policies are providing a strong foundation for our state’s economic success.”

She added the state’s budget, and the new programs, will provide opportunities and tools for Minnesotans to better their lives for their families.

“Last session, we enacted a budget that will benefit Minnesotans for generations to come,” said Hortman. “Our budget is already growing the economy by growing the middle class and it has strengthened our state’s economic security. As the budget we passed continues to be more fully enacted, it will ensure that more Minnesotans have opportunities and tools to build better lives for themselves and their families.”

She also said the DFL-controlled legislature will be focusing on continued middle-class growth and lowering costs.

“You’ll see in the 2024 session that Democrats will continue to focus on growing the middle class, lowering costs and reducing stress in people’s lives,” she said. 

Republican House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth of Cold Spring released a statement about the looming deficit. 

Demuth wrote: “Democrats put their insatiable appetite for spending ahead of the needs of Minnesotans and we will all be paying for their fiscal insanity for years to come.”

Adding, the DFL-majority took the entire surplus and raised an additional $10 billion in taxes to go on a spending spree, increasing the state budget by an unsustainable 40%. Conservatives wanted to use the surplus for tax relief.

To check out the Minnesota budget forecast for yourself by clicking here.

Fargo car dealership burglary suspect arrested near Nekoma

A van stolen from a Fargo dealership in an early Monday morning burglary has been recovered in northeastern North Dakota.

42-year-old Jason Duerr of Devils Lake was arrested near Nekoma. He’s in the Pembina County Jail on charges related to the theft of the 2023 Ram cargo van from Fisher Sales & Leasing.

Cavalier County Chief Deputy Matt Wright says Duerr was arrested after a bartender in Nekoma reported a suspicious person ordered a beer, but didn’t have money to pay for it. He was arrested as he was walking to where he’d left the stolen van.

Wright says Duerr told a deputy that he had used drugs. He says three deputies had to use force to place him into a squad car. Duerr was also combative when he was taken to jail and may face a terrorizing charge in Pembina County.

At one point, Wright says Duerr told the bartender that he had stolen a van in Fargo and was surprised that he didn’t recognize him from the news.

Story by Paul Jurgens / KFGO

Bemidji juvenile arrested for making terroristic threats toward Bemidji school district

A Bemidji boy was arrested Tuesday night for making threats against the Bemidji school district and a staff member at the school.   

According to police, the threat was made by text message to the Beltrami County Emergency Communication Center. 

Initially, police were unable to determine who made the threats or where they came from, so they recommended the school move to an e-learning day Wednesday.   

Officers were eventually able trace the phone number to a residence in Bemidji where they arrested the boy for felony terroristic threats.   

Bemidji Police, Bemidji school staff, Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office, and Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension all investigated the incident.

Story by Ryan Janke / KFGO

2 injured in two-vehicle crash in Alexandria Township on Tuesday

Two people are injured in a crash near Alexandria on Tuesday night.

According to the Minnesota State Patrol, the crash took place on Highway 29/39th Ave NE in Alexandria Township. A Dodge Ram, driven by Lawrence Dailey, 63, of Alexandria, was traveling westbound on 39th Ave., while a Hyundai Sante Fe, driven by Jessica Cook, 34, of Carlos, was traveling northbound on Highway 29 when the two vehicles collided in the intersection.

Cook along with a passenger, Christopher Cook, 38, of Carlos, were both injured and taken to Alomere Health.

The incident remains under investigation.

Story by Mark Anthony / KXRA

Minnesota BCA investigating multiple ‘swatting’ incidents at Minnesota schools and Jewish facilities

Authorities in Minnesota are investigating widespread “swatting” incidents targeting schools and Jewish facilities Wednesday. 

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said at least 25 schools and nine Jewish facilities in Minnesota have reported receiving threats as of 3:45 p.m. 

According to the BCA, the emailed threats involved bombings and shootings were each “almost identical” and “no incidents have turned out to be real.” 

“Our Minnesota Fusion Center is tracking these reports and keeping local law enforcement apprised of the situation,” the agency shared. “At this time, other states are not reporting similar widespread swatting attempts today.” 

Swatting incidents happen when someone makes prank threats in an attempt to bring a large law enforcement response to a particular address, according to the BCA.

The Rochester Police Department confirmed a synagogue in Rochester was among the institutions targeted Wednesday. 

Earlier this year, a hoax shooting report caused a frightening incident at Banfield Elementary School in Austin, when police officers breached the doors to the school believing an active shooter incident was ongoing.

That incident was one of eight hoax shooting calls made in a two-day period in Minnesota.  

“We remind students and communities to notify local law enforcement and school resource officers about suspected threats to schools, and to contact the BCA through our See It Say It Send It app,” the BCA shared Wednesday afternoon. 

Second driest November on record for parts of Minnesota

Last month was the second-driest November on record for parts of Minnesota, with overall temperatures sitting at 3.7 degrees above average while precipitation for the month was 1.57 inches below average.  

The Twin Cities area and much of central and southern Minnesota is currently stuck in a dry pattern that started all the way back in early May, with the only exception being the three-to-four-week wet period in late September and early October. 

During this time, there was a spike on Sept. 25, with 1.90 inches, an all-time high for the year.

So where is the snow? 

El Niño is also said to be playing a key factor in the predicted warm December temperatures. An El Niño winter is a seasonal weather pattern that occurs when unusually warm ocean water piles up along the equatorial west coast of South America. This phenomenon affects weather patterns around the globe, bringing milder temperatures and less snowfall to the northern parts of the United States.  

El Niño not only correlates to milder winters for Minnesota, but typically results in less seasonal snowfall. El Niño doubles the odds of a brown Christmas in the lower half of the state.

Duluth has also been witnessing the effects of El Niño. Overall, precipitation is closer to normal but far below normal on snowfall this season.  

Meteorologists also say while El Niño has clearly affected much of the state, it is still quite early in the winter season, and some flurries can be expected to come down eventually.

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