The City Council of Bemidji determines legislative priorities before the anniversary in Capitol.

Next Wednesday, March 5, Bemidji's day at the Capitol event, which gives the city officials the opportunity to present the city's legislature before priorities. In order to provide these legislators precisely and consistent, the city council of Bemidji kept a working session to discuss exactly what the city needs before going to St. Paul.

The city council was of the opinion that an application for larger renovation work or the possible reorganization of Bemidji's main fireplace is very needed, whereby the need for changing rooms for mutual changing rooms for data protection concerns and an expansion of the total size is required. The building was built in 1970 and has not carried out any renovation work since then.

They also looked at a commitment to the town hall itself, whereby the accommodations for disabilities were a problem and a necessary updating of the air system of the building. But not every city council was one of the buildings on board with the reconstruction.

“I am not yet convinced that that would not be a priority for me,” says Ward 3 City Councilor Mark Dickinson. “It seems to be the path of the world, after 50 years they tear off and build new ones, and it is difficult for me to get my arms around that.” “So I am more for a sales tax for sales tax to help us maintain what we own. “

Ward 4 council member Emelie Rivera offered the council: “In this request, it is possible for us to go and say:“ We are considering finding ways to reuse what we have, but in the event that this does not happen can not look [for] Up to this amount we will give you this upper amount, we will spend our time to do the thing to find out what the best way is and how we can best use our funds. “

The council members may then discuss the implementation of sales and special use tax as one of their priorities against which some council members were against it.

“While I'm interested in exploration [a] Special consumption tax or food and beverage tax, I am not for sales tax or even for the simple fact that a handful of companies have reached and I spoke to some of them, ”said Josh Peterson,” said Josh Peterson Station 2 city council. “Our sales taxes are already significantly high. And I know a handful of people who actually buy things and let them send them out of the city so that they can avoid paying this sales tax. It only pushes companies in Hubbard County, over this county border, and that is so worrying. “

“I agree with the special tax, I am more for a food and beverage taxer than sales tax,” said Mayor Jorge Prince. “We have infrastructure problems. We know that our streets are on a rotation by 100 years. We know that we do not have sufficient funding for some of our maintenance in our buildings, and that's why we have the conversation that we have through Feuerwache 1 and the town hall. So we have to be in front of and so for me, I think that's the easiest and easiest way. “

The financing of housing development was also listed as a priority for the council, but some council members believed that they should spend part of the existing money before they were asked for more.

“I really want to encourage us to have a conversation about how we want to use some of these housing costs, because this is the best way to return to the legislator and to say: 'We have these dollars in this way for this reason Encourage to deliver more of these unrestricted housing costs, ”said Ward 1 City Councilor Gwenia Fiskevold Gould. “This is what people find very frustrating about the government if we only sit on dollars that we should use with some of these problems.”

Mayor Prince would also like to remind the legislators of the state that the railway corridor project is officially underway and hopes that the Council can find other funds of development financing for this project while they are in the Capitol next Wednesday.