by Dennis Dalman
editor@thenewsleaders.com
Any planned developments on the former Verso paper mill site will have to wait awhile, up to a year anyway, the Sartell City Council decided at its May 9 meeting.
The council voted unanimously, 5-0, to impose a moratorium of up to one year, giving a task force time to examine all potential uses for that site along the Mississippi River, including environmental impacts.
The Verso site is owned by American Iron and Metal Development, which is opposed to the moratorium. AIM purchased the Verso property for $12.5 million after Verso announced all operations on the plant would cease following an explosion and fire on Memorial Day four years ago that claimed the life of a Verso employee.
AIM demolished and dismantled all of the massive equipment at the site and shipped it to recycling outlets. AIM is a recycling group based in Montreal, Canada.
The task force will be comprised of city officials, people from both Benton and Stearns counties, owners of industrial property and at least one member of the Greater St. Cloud Development Corp. Members of the task force will study every ramification of potential developments along the river at and near the Verso site, which is currently zoned for industrial development. Members of the task force are expected to be approved by the city council next month.
The moratorium could be lifted earlier than a year or even extended beyond a year depending upon the findings of the task force.
Patti Gartland, former Sartell city administrator and now president of the Greater St. Cloud Development Corp., spoke before the council, stating a moratorium on property development is a good idea so the task force can review all regulations and ordinances regarding development and ensure consistency is applied across the board.
There are about 70 acres of riverside land at the Verso site. A railroad is adjacent to it on its east side. A hydroelectric dam spans the river to the east.
Sartell City Planner/Developer Anita Rasmussen has long favored a task force to ensure the best choices will be made for any riverfront development that will be consistent with the city’s long-range master plan.
In November 2013, Rasmussen wrote the following:
“The Sartell Paper Mill property presented an unparalleled opportunity for the City of Sartell and AIM to redevelop a place that would attract new industrial, commercial, retail, housing developers and investments, ultimately bringing jobs and economic development to the area. The river and rail impacts presented exciting possibilities, yet these combined with other existing environmental elements required careful analysis.”
Now, with the moratorium, the task force will have time to examine any and all contingencies related to developments at the site.
This is an aerial view of the Verso paper mill in Sartell before its demolition.
A bulldozer tears away at recyclable debris during the massive, ambitious dismantling of the Verso paper mill, which took more than a year to complete.
