(Spirit Lake)– A longtime Spirit Lake manufacturer may be about to relocate.
Following a closed session with the Spirit Lake city council and John Brown, a local developer, the Dickinson county board of supervisors today (Tues.) voted three-to-two to proceed to the next step in a possible relocation of Ferguson Manufacturing, currently located at Highways 9 and 71 and Jackson Avenue in Spirit Lake.
Brown says the proposal has been in the works for a couple of years already. He says conctruction of the new courthouse immediately to the east of their is what brought the talks to a head.
Under the proposal, the county would purchase the property for 350-thousand dollars. It’s appraised at 375-thousand.
In addition, Brown says the county would be requested to participate with the city of Spirit Lake on a tax increment financing/urban renewal package to give Ferguson Manufacturing incentive to make the move. The new plant would be located just north of the railroad tracks west of the Farmer’s Co-Op Elevator in Spirit Lake. Brown says Ferguson hopes construction could start this spring with the new facility ready to be moved into in the third or fourth quarter of the year.
The board of supervisors vote to proceed to the next step was three-to-two, with supervisors David Gottsche and Mardi Allen casting the no votes. The next step is for the county to hold a public hearing on the possible purchase. That’s set for 10:00 a.m. next Tuesday, January 18th.
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