FAIRMONT– The Fairmont City Council held a discussion about the proposed financing structure of the proposed community center during its meeting on Monday.

Finance Director, Paul Hoye, said the item came out of a joint work session between several stakeholders held on May 10 regarding the proposed community center.

“During the meeting, Dan Burns with Taft (bond counsel) outlined a memo that went through the framework for financing the community center,” Hoye said.

Some of the key points include who will own the property and what the financial commitments will be for the city.

“It was discussed that the resolution would be brought to the city council for approval of the framework so that the Foundation would be able to move forward with the marketing of their New Market Tax Credit issue and complete the financing of their side of the project,” Hoye said.

Council Member Michele Miller had several issues with the proposed financing structure. At the start of Monday’s council meeting she had asked for the item to be removed from the agenda and tabled due to a number of reasons.

She took issue with the lack of proof of cash on hand from the Fairmont Area Community Center Foundation. She also questioned why the YMCA, the projected operator of the community center, doesn’t have a presence in Fairmont and said there was no evidence its programming was even needed here.

Council member Jay Maynard said that the council wasn’t yet voting on handing over the city’s $12 million, raised in local option sales tax. Rather he said the council was just adopting the framework.

“We’re not doing anything yet that we can’t take back… we’re not committing anything yet,” Maynard said.

Council Member Britney Kawecki said that to not vote on the matter would not be in the best interest of the city because to delay it would result in not moving forward with the New Market Tax Credit.

“As time goes on, costs go up and things are not guaranteed,” Kawecki said.

Burns, who was available via speakerphone, was asked if he had anything to add. He said he wanted to reiterate the language in the resolution.

“The preliminary approval given is solely for the purpose of marketing and applying for New Market Tax Credits by the Foundation,” Burns said.

The motion passed 3-2 with Maynard, Kawecki and Council Member Randy Lubenow in favor and Miller and Council Member Wayne Hasek opposed.

The council also held a discussion on communications regarding the search for an interim city administrator and/or full-time city administrator. The discussion item was added to the agenda at the start of the meeting by request of Kawecki.

Lubenow said he recently had a good talk with GovHR, the recruiting firm the city is using on its search for both an interim and full-time city administrator. Kawecki said she also had a good talk with the firm, but said she thought it was important that the whole council is receiving updates.

“What is the position that GovHR posted? I think they said they would be posting it this last week. It would be nice to see the position that they posted and what they’re looking for,” Kawecki said.

She also said the council had discussed city involvement and questioned when citizens can give input on what they would like to see in a city administrator.

Miller, who is on the hiring committee along with Mayor Lee Baarts, said that Baarts, through City Clerk Patty Monsen, has given out timely information to the rest of the council members. She said the councilors need to remain patient through the process.

“The communication is there, it just might not be what you want,” Miller said.

She also said a community survey, which will be available in Spanish, should be coming out soon.

“There is a process that we have to go through and patience is required so that we can do this properly,” Miller said.

In other action, the council:

— Approved a grant worth $138,816 from the Minnesota Department of Aeronautics for use on maintenance and operations at the Fairmont Municipal Airport.

— Approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Fairmont Area Schools regarding the School Resource Officer (SRO) partnership between the city and the school district.

— Approved a motion to temporarily amend the City Council Rules of Procedure, previously adopted, to designate Finance Director Paul Hoye and City Clerk Patty Monsen to forward questions and concerns to the city attorney until an interim city administrator or city administrator is hired.