Parks & Recreation Facility Improvement Planning

Recreation Facility Improvements - Reinvestment in our Community. 

In February 2021, the City of East Grand Forks formed a building committee with the goal of discussing the community need and desire for improved recreation facilities. Throughout 2021 and beyond, the City staff, the volunteer building committee, and consultants from JLG Architects and Construction Engineers have met to prepare a Master Plan for facility improvements in East Grand Forks. 

Information on the Building Committee planning process, meeting minutes, and Master Plan design concepts can be found at the following links: 

What does a Yes Vote Mean?

by voting yes on both ballot questions, you will be approving a 1% Total Sales Tax Increase for up to 20 years.

Civic Center Sports Complex Measure Explanation: 

This measure will allow the City to finance the remodeling, upgrades, and additions to the Civic Center Sports Complex for 20 years or until $6,745,000 plus the costs of collecting and administering the tax is collected, whichever comes first. This measure will allow for renovations to the existing Civic Center, along with the addition of a new, multi-use turf baseball field. 

VFW Arena Measure Explanation:

This measure will allow the City to finance the reconstruction and upgrades of the VFW Memorial Arena for 20 years or until $8,000,000 plus the costs of collecting and administering the tax is collected, whichever comes first. This measure will allow for upgrades and enhancements at the VFW Arena.

Background INformation Documents on Facility Planning

  1. Arena Feasibility Study conducted by JLG Architects - presented to City Council on Nov 12, 2019
  2. Arena Feasibility Study Condition Assessment Report - as presented to City Council on Nov. 12, 2019
  3. Recreation Facility Fundraising Feasibility Report July 2021
  4. R22 Refrigerant Phaseout Presentation
  5. Report of Economic Impact from EGF Hockey and Figure Skating Events
  6. Recreation Facility Improvement Planning - Preliminary Design Notebook Including Engineering Narratives and Building Committee Meeting Notes

History of Facility Improvement Planning process and Community Survey results

Beginning in 2020, the Parks and Recreation Department has held multiple forms of Community Input sessions to encourage residents to participate in the early planning process for improvements to the cities recreation facilities. A Community Input session was held at the Civic Center in February 2020, and two online community survey’s were conducted to identify the community’s priorities in facility improvements within the City of East Grand Forks. In addition to the community wide surveys, the City has conducted surveys of the East Grand Forks business community and gathered community wide feedback through its volunteer/resident led building committee. 

These surveys were conducted to gauge the input of our residents on their general support for the outlined facility improvements, the potential level of support for a local sales tax to fund them, and general input on the direction/goals of the improvements within each facility. The input received from our citizens is valuable in determining the direction of these improvements and even the potential scope of work within each facility.

The following links detail the survey responses and input given by residents and how they help align the project goals for Recreation Facility Improvements within our Ice Arenas and Baseball Complex.

Community Survey #1 - available March 15 - April 15, 2020 - click here to see results

Community Survey #2 - available May 1 - May 30, 2020 - click here to see results 

Recreation Facility Improvement & Local Option Sales Tax consideration update and timeline

Below is an update and timeline on the community planning effort to improve its Recreation facilities, as well as consideration of a Local Option Sales Tax to fund the discussed projects
  • November 5, 2024 General Election: Residents will be asked to vote on two questions related to the proposed 1% Sales Tax increase. Per MN Statute requirement, each project site is required to have its own question on the ballot. 
  • July 2024 - City Council approves two proposed ballot questions for residents to consider the Sales Tax votes at the November 5, 2024 General Election 
  • June 2023 - The MN State Legislature approved the City of East Grand Forks request to authorize a vote of its residents to increase the Local Sales tax by 1% for the purpose of improvements to the Civic Center Sports Complex and Itt's Williams baseball fields, as well as the VFW Memorial Arena. This approval allows the City of East Grand Forks to request the sales tax increase at the next general election, which is November 5, 2024
  • January 2023 - City Council approved a resolution of support for a Local Sales Tax increase of 1% for 20 years or until $14.745 Million in project funds have been generated. 
  • January - June 2022 - In January, City Council requested authority to vote for a Local Sales tax to the MN Legislature. The 2022 legislative session ended without approval of a tax bill, meaning the City did not receive authority to conduct the vote in 2022.  
  • September 28, 2021 - Building Committee presents its work, along with updated Design Concepts for the recreation facility improvements.
  • May - July 2021 - Convergent Nonprofit Solutions is contracted by the City to conduct a Fundraising Feasibility Study, garnering input from community leaders and potential donors for their feedback on the improvement planning. 
  • February 2021 - City of East Grand Forks is awarded funding of a 50% matching grant through the Minnesota Amateur Sports Commission Mighty Ducks Grant, to retrofit the refrigeration plant at the Civic Center.
  • January 2021 - City Council asks the Parks & Recreation Department to form a building committee in an effort create a plan for recreation facility improvements.
  • 2018 - 2020 - City Staff and City Council worked with JLG Architects to complete a comprehensive review of its existing recreation facilities and suggest necessary improvements and upgrades to keep the facilities operating efficiently and in compliance with today's ADA and building code standards. 

Sales Tax vs. Property Tax 

The City of East Grand Forks is interested in seeking a local option sales tax to fund recreation facility improvements to help share the cost of the projects with residents and non-resident visitors to our community.

SALES TAX
Sales Tax is a one-time tax, which is collected on at the point of sale on all Sales & Use tax eligible purchases made in East Grand Forks.  This tax is collected from both residents and visitors of East Grand Forks.

The City previously had a 1% Local Option Sales Tax in place, approved by our residents in 2016, to fund the renovation of the Sherlock Park Swimming Pool.  This sales tax was overwhelmingly approved by our voters in 2016, with 70% voting in approval. Upon approval of the Sales tax vote, the City used a low-interest loan to fund the project, and the average $85,000 a month in tax revenue has been used to pay back the loan.  The Swimming Pool project was paid in full by June 2020, at which point the tax was retired.

The City’s plan for funding of the considered recreation facility projects would be much the same as the pool renovation, using low-interest bonds to pay for improvements, with 1% Local Sales tax revenue being used to pay back the bonds.  At the average $85,000 a month in tax revenue, the City can expect to pay off $15 Million in project costs plus interest in about 20 years.

PROPERTY TAX

Property tax is an annual tax, which is based on the current value of the property of local homeowners and businesses. Only those that own or rent property within the city pay property taxes.

The City has also reviewed the option of property tax increases to fund the necessary improvements to our recreation facilities. This is not a desired option, as it would place a significant burden on our residents. Based on the City’s 2018-2019 Net Tax Capacity (NTC), the City could seek a 20-year General Obligation bond to fund about $15 Million in project funds. This increase would mean an estimated $257 annual increase on residential property taxes for a $200,000 home for the next 20 years. Commercial property tax increases could be even greater. 

What does a 1% Local Sales tax mean to me? 

The current Sales & Use Tax in the City of East Grand Forks is 7.375%. This is due to the retirement of the 1% Local sales tax to pay for the swimming pool improvements. This means a new 1% Sales Tax for improvements of recreation facilities would replace the expired pool tax, and our city sales tax rate would remain at 8.375%.  

The below table represents an example of the Sales Tax paid on eligible purchases, using the current rate of 8.375%.    

Purchase SubtotalCurrent 7.375% Tax RateProposed 8.375% Tax RateNew Purchase Total
$10.00$0.74$0.84$10.84
$100.00$7.38$8.38$108.38
$1,000.00$73.75$83.75$1,083.75


What does it take for a City to consider a Local Option Sales Tax?  

The requirements to institute a local sales tax in the State of Minnesota were changed in 2019, and the City must follow a new process to consider a local sales tax.  The process and timeline for a Local Sales Tax are the following: 

  •  City Council must pass a resolution authorizing a vote for a local sales tax.
  • MN State Legislature must now review the Local Sales Tax proposal and approve the City of East Grand Forks to move forward with a City vote to approve a Local Sales Tax. 
  • If approved by MN State Legislature, the City of East Grand Forks will finalize a resolution detailing the projects to be included in the final election ballot, and final approval of what percent the local sales tax will be and for how many years. 
  • A separate ballot question for each proposed project would be on the ballot for the November 5, 2024 general election.
  • Following the vote at the General Election, any projects approved to move forward will move into a design phase and the City will begin work on bidding out the work for the approved projects.