Traill County may vote on addition
The Traill County Commission may put a county office building addition project on the June 8 primary election ballot.
The commission is considering a plan to build a two-story, 8,000-square-foot building that would run parallel to the present County Courthouse and connect to the courthouse and a 1955 addition in Hillsboro, N.D., the county seat.
The county is working on the plan with Bobbi Hepper Olson, an architect with offices in Buxton and Grand Forks. The County Board hopes to review cost estimates at its June 16 meeting, County Auditor Becca Braaten said.
"Right now, they're looking over everybody's needs," she said.
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The architect said at a recent meeting that the project could be done for less than $2.1 million, about the same amount Traill County has received in economic stimulus funding through a Recovery Zone Economic Development Bond program provided through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
The county has been trying for several years to deal with overcrowded conditions in the courthouse addition that was built in 1955. It houses a portion of the County Social Services Department, the Traill County Jail and the county's E-911 Dispatch Center.
In 2008, voters twice rejected a $6.5 million plan to construct a new building and raze the present courthouse addition.
The latest proposal is a scaled-back version.
The new building would include a new elevator that provides access to the historic courthouse, which was built in 1907, plus an indoor hallway or walkway to connect the buildings.
It also would include improvements to the 1955 courthouse addition, financed through a $100,000 energy efficiency grant.
McVille sets vote for elderly housing
A special election is scheduled March 2 in McVille, N.D., on a measure to enact a city sales tax to build an assisted-living complex in the community.
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The proposed 1 percent sales tax would pay for the local share of the project.
The city received a $10,000 grant from the Nelson County Jobs Development Authority to begin the process of an assisted living project. City leaders also hope to receive financing through the North Dakota Department of Public Finance.
The proposed 12-unit assisted-living facility would be built on the north end of the Care Center in McVille. It would be managed by Nelson County Health Systems, which also runs a 19-bed hospital, a 39-bed skilled nursing center and a rural health clinic in the Nelson County community of 470.
An initial public hearing was held Thursday. Another hearing will be held at 7 p.m. Feb. 25 in the McVille Restaurant.
DL museum tax hike makes ballot
A proposal to increase a mill levy for Devils Lake's Lake Region Heritage Center from 2.5 to 3 mills will be on the ballot in the June 8 primary election in Ramsey County.
The Ramsey County Commission agreed this week to seek voter approval for the request by the heritage center's board of directors.
The heritage center, located in the former U.S. Post Office building that has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places, has been struggling financially in recent months.
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If voters approve the increase, real estate taxes on property valued at $100,000 would increase by an estimated $2.25 per year, according to Ramsey County Auditor Elizabeth Fischer.
