(Spirit Lake)– Proposed renovations of the Veteran’s Memorial Plaza on the east side of the Dickinson County Courthouse are moving forward. The Board of Supervisors this (Tues.) morning voted 5-0 to proceed and to send out a request for proposals for engineering for the project, which has a total cost estimated at just over $671,000.
Steve Anderson represents a group of Dickinson county veterans who have been working on preliminary plans for the project. He says that group has agreed to cover about $169,000 of that with the county responsible for the remainder…
“Pay for the relocation of the memorial stones, the ones that are there, add the new ones, add the granite bases, replace the flag poles, add a flag pole, and then whatever else we can help with in that area. Right now we’ve got $85,000 raised. We’ve got a big push that we’re proposing but we don’t want to do that push until we know we’re pushing toward the same goal.”
Anderson says he’s hopeful they’ll be able to raise $200,000 in donations for the project, adding that they are also actively researching grant possibilities. Replacement of the sidewalks and some drainage would be part of the county’s responsibilities. Supervisor Kim Wermersen voiced his support for the county’s involvement…
“I think that number one, it’s a very, we have to do something with that walkway anyway, it’s very difficult for snow removal or anything else. And number two, it’s just going to be a really great thing around the courthouse I think people will enjoy to come and be inviting, too. And it showcases our veterans. I think all those things are important, so I personally would like to see us proceed with that.”
As part of the project, pavers with the names of veterans on them would be taken up, with those names being etched into granite slabs instead.
They’re hoping to get more firm cost estimates once the engineering is completed.
