The Crookston Ways and Means Committee met after the city council meeting on Monday night in the City Hall Council Chambers.
The first item on the agenda was a presentation from the Crookston Housing and Economic Development Authority regarding the housing development project located behind Casey’s General Store. “CHEDA has been working on this for at least a year,” says Interim City Administrator Darin Selzler. “This was just a discussion to inform the Council of what that looks like with a couple of twin homes and the cost involved with that.”
The second item on the agenda was a grant request in conjunction with the Rail Spur Project. The discussion centered on Phase 2 of the project, which involved an expansion of the rail spur. However, rather than just an easement for an expansion, the plan for the expansion consists of the track to hook back toward the west, which would change the legal process from an easement to a Land Lease according to Selzler. “There wouldn’t be any cost to the city on that, it would be just a Land Lease to the owner of the railroad spur for the use of it on that property.”
The third item on the agenda was a discussion regarding the current slate of housing incentives for new builders, which is set to expire at the end of this year. The discussion included the removal of the free garbage bag incentive due to the changeover to the new garbage system over the summer, giving homeowners more say in when they use their free water incentive, and potentially expanding the list to include relocating individuals, along with those who just move into town.
The final item on the agenda was a discussion regarding the search for a new City Administrator. Interim City Administrator Darin Selzler’s contract now extends into 2026, and after discussion, the council determined that the best plan was to postpone the search until the summer months, with May of 2026 being the target month.
The discussion was then tabled for the next city council meeting, scheduled for Monday, December 29th at 5:30 PM in the City Hall Council Chambers.
