The Crookston Ways and Means Committee met on Monday night and heard an update from Police Chief Paul Biermaier on the status of the grant application for funding assistance for a School Resources Officer (SRO). Biermaier contacted the Department of Justice, and was informed that they hope to have notifications made on funded applications by the end of November, giving a few weeks of breathing room before the 2018 Budget needs to be certified by the Council at their December 11 meeting. If the application is funded, it would cover 75% of the officer’s salary and benefit in the first year, 50% in the second year, and 25% in the third year. Biermaier detailed a few of the benefits of having an SRO, including increased safety and a quicker response to calls; crime deterrence; relationship building and increased trust between the students and the police department. “An SRO is a community investment,” stated Chief Biermaier. “Here in Crookston they can positively impact 1,000 students plus their families, and really help change the face of law enforcement.”
The Councilmen also voted to approve a financial commitment of $30,000 (over two years) for a for a Small Business Development Center (SBDC) partnership with University of Minnesota Crookston. The SBDC office would likely be located at Valley Technology Park, which would put it in close proximity to UMC, and would allow businesses and entrepreneurs to work in tandem with Crookston Housing and Economic Development Authority (CHEDA) and their economic development incentives.
Preliminary budget discussions continued, with City Finance Director, Angel Weasner informing the Councilmen that she finally received notification from Polk County on the City’s tax capacity, which will assist in setting the levy for 2018. “We received our tax capacity estimate from the County, and it was an increase of $371,000. That brings the City’s estimated tax capacity up to $3.7 million dollars. What that $371,000 increase does is spread the bills out over more homes and more property taxes, so the levy percent will actually decrease in everybody’s taxes,” said Weasner. “So it is a benefit to everyone, because we have managed to increase our tax capacity, the City’s portion on your homeowner’s taxes will be going down. The levy set by the County is still preliminary, but at eight percent, we will be receiving $2,123,424 over the next year. That is spaced out over 3,170 homes. The homes vary in price, of course, so if you have a more expensive home, you’ll pay proportionately more taxes, but you will still see a decrease in your City taxes next year.”
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