City Council votes to take half of 1 percent sales tax

In a special meeting Tuesday, the City Council voted 4-1 to take half of the city’s 1 percent sales tax for infrastructure improvements and extended the tax out to 2022.

The resolution taking the funds focuses what is now about $1 million on reducing city-wide special assessments on infrastructure, including street work as well as sanitary and storm sewer systems. The funds will start going into city coffers March 1.

Also included in the resolution is the extension of the sales tax for 12 years. The sales tax, which has been used exclusively for economic development, would have come up for renewal in 2012 as it has every seven years. With the City Council’s vote, it will not go to the voters or be renewed again by the council until 2022.

Councilman Ken Schulz, who was the lone vote against the resolution, argued the petition encouraging the council to take half of the sales tax specified it was to be used for sewer improvements.

“My understanding was there were flood-related reasons why we had to work on this now,” he said. “According to the calculations now, this is to offset special assessments … rather than use it for specific flood-related improvements.”

Mayor Clarice Liechty, who made the motion, said by using the money for the city’s share of specials, everyone gets the benefit from it. Councilwoman Kelani Parisien agreed and said for most people in the community special assessments are related to streets.

“We’re trying to be fair and equitable to all of the residents,” Parisien said. “We couldn’t just focus on the sewer system in the valley.”

City resident John Grabinger, who spearheaded the petition drive, said the emphasis on the flood was to recognize the need to take action. He agreed with Parisien that using the funding to offset special assessments “was fair and equitable across the board.”

The plan was one of two proposed by Parisien and Councilman Pat Nygaard who were on the sales tax subcommittee working with members of the Jamestown/ Stutsman Development Corp. Board on a fair split of the money. The second option, which the council did not consider, came from the JSDC-council collaboration on the subcommittee. It would have put about 45 percent of the 1 percent in city coffers.

The council ignored the JSDC proposal, which proposed 25 percent of the sales tax going wherever the city wanted to use it. Another 25 percent would be set aside for economic development infrastructure projects in collaboration with the city. Parisien spoke to that.

“It’s my opinion, infrastructure is the responsibility of the city,” Parisien said. “By going to the JSDC for different city projects we’ve been passing the buck. The council needs to be proactive on future growth. We can work with them (JSDC) on future projects but the accountability stops here.”

She added the 25 percent the JSDC wanted to set aside for economic development infrastructure is because the city has approached the board to fund city projects. She said the city needs to fund its own infrastructure projects and that includes the $280,000 a year going to help pay off the wastewater treatment plant.

“They were allowing for piecemeal projects with that 25 percent,” she said. “I want to continue with a working relationship with the JSDC, but their core competency is recruiting businesses, jobs and people. I want them to focus on job growth and business.”

Schulz questioned negating the work done by the subcommittee and bypassing a vote on the issue by Jamestown residents. He said those voters had overwhelmingly supported use of the sales tax for only economic development in the past.

“I don’t feel we as a council should make that decision,” Schulz said.

In other business, the City Council approved a request for assistance from the state to deal with the potential of high releases from the two dams next spring. The Stutsman County Commission already denied a formal request for assistance saying it does not have the resources to deal with a high amount of runoff.

“The state will deny it as well,” said City Engineer Reed Schwartzkopf.

The requests and denials are steps leading to a request by the state to the Army Corps of Engineers and its funding sources for advance preparation. The corps’ assessment is the snow pack and moisture levels are similar to conditions in 1997, when releases of 1,800 cubic feet per second were necessary.

“This is not an impending event,” Schwartzkopf said. “It is a possibility of a 1997-type event. It will take another three to five weeks before we know.”

Sun reporter Toni Pirkl can be reached at (701) 952-8453 or by e-mail at tonip@jamestownsun.com