contributed photo
This picture of the Verso Paper Mill’s main building was taken in 2013, not long after the announcement was made by the company that owned it to close the mill and cease all operations at that vast site along the Mississippi River.
by Dennis Dalman
What would you like to see developed on the large property that once was the site of the now-gone Sartell paper mill?
Sartell residents have a chance to give their opinions on that question in an online survey that can be taken now through May 10.
To participate in the online survey, visit:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Sartellpapermill_PublicSurvey
(Please note there is an underscore mark between paper mill and PublicSurvey.)
The vast site along the west side of the Mississippi River was home to a paper mill of various names and ownership for a little more than 100 years. The last mill was known as “Verso.” It was closed permanently in 2012 after an explosion at the plant on Memorial Day caused one employee’s death and a major destructive fire that was difficult to fight and extinguish. After the closure announcement, a company purchased the site and leveled it, selling salvageable equipment and recycling the rest of the materials.
The mill’s closing signaled an end of an era in Sartell because that mill under a series of owners comprised an economic and employment bedrock for so many decades in Sartell and the surrounding area.
Now, the city has plans to buy that property back from the company so it can be used for development plans. As a first step toward that goal, the city hired Anita Archambeau, a redevelopment and planning consultant who now lives in Illinois but who was for 19 years Sartell’s community development director. Archambeau was tasked with creating a “Sartell Paper Mill Master Plan and Redevelopment Strategy” to best determine what use or uses should be developed on that site. Part of that master plan is the resident and business survey/questionnaire referred to at the opening of this story.
The survey introduction states the following:
“This survey aims to establish guiding principles, vision and goals for the redevelopment of the former paper mill by reviewing four areas, including vision, land uses, character and open space opportunities and constraints. Ultimately, this survey will be critical in creating principles and concepts that will guide land-use decisions while highlighting the issues most important to the Sartell community.”
The survey will help the city formulate its master-planning process’s goals, which include to accurately capture and represent the community; to offer a range of attainable suggestions to reach the community vision; to come up with a plan that thoughtfully enables development and redevelopment; to make the plan understandable and valuable for a range of users, with clear opportunities for implementation; and to provide flexibility to adapt to new needs and opportunities as the area evolves.
The options/questions on the survey include medium density residential uses, high density residential uses, mixed uses, recreational uses and general-business retail uses.
Among the recreational options are bike and pedestrian trails, canoe area, fishing and water-viewing piers, small marinas, a walking museum, curling and/or ice skating (in winters only). Survey responders are not locked into those options; they can feel free to give their own suggestions.
This picture of the Verso Paper Mill’s main building was taken in 2013, not long after the announcement was made by the company that owned it to close the mill and cease all operations at that vast site along the Mississippi River.
