RIVER FALLS — A 5-2 vote saw the River Falls City Council approving the purchase of 0.33 acres at 132 Vine St. from Nick Wilson at the Nov. 26 meeting.

The property will help the city target its redevelopment opportunities laid out in the Campus Corridor Concept, but also caused some concern for a few members of the council. Alderperson Scott Morrissette discussed a pair of criteria that he felt the acquisition did not fit.

“In the past I voted in favor of property acquisition because it met two criteria that I apply,” Morrissette said. “First, that the property fits into a larger project that has a clear project need and/or timeline, and second of all that property can sustain itself economically through rent.”

Morrissette said this property does not meet either of the criteria. He said “substantial” improvements are needed for the property to be rentable and repairs are not “economically feasible.” Morrissette said although there are interested developers in solving the issue, there is nothing currently in the works other than concepts.

“I do not believe this property acquisition meets the criteria I mentioned,” Morrissette said. “I also do not believe that the residents want us to speculate on land that has no clear project and cannot sustain itself while we wait for a project plan.”

Alderperson Todd Bjerstedt backed the comments of Morrissette, joining him as the two votes against the agenda item.

Alderperson Sean Downing spoke in favor of the purchase prior to its approval, outlining why he felt it was important for the continued housing focus in the city.

“I’d like to point out that this is an opportunity to focus on multi-family housing that’s been identified in the Campus Corridor project planning process,” Downing said. “By doing so, it will meet part of our housing plan.”

The cost of the acquisition is $125,000 with the source of the funds being TID No. 8 with a general fund advance.

Shared Ride Taxi

The council approved a Shared Ride Taxi operating grant application to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation for 2025. The city established a shared ride service in 1985 and eventually began applying for state grants to fund it.

Downing pulled the item from the consent agenda for discussion, asking City Administrator Scot Simpson about the difficulties of the shared ride service from the city’s perspective, considering there are only a few companies to choose from as options to run it.

“There’s assurances that we provide the federal government about how we’re going to operate it. There’s assurances we provide about not taking away private sector’s ability to provide other services,” Simpson said. “That essentially means that there’s very few operators to work with. We’ve been fortunate to have an operator that we feel is competent and provides good service to us, but we frankly have limited funds to provide an expansive service across the area.”

The max cost of service for 2025 is $385,284, up from $339,330 in 2023. County, state and federal grants all help to fund the service.

Residents still have to pay a fare, but it is a relatively low one, with adults under the age of 62 inside of city limits owing $2.75 to use it.

Other business

• Approved the final plat for phases two and three at Oak Hill off Apollo Road. The original approval came in 2023, creating 29 single family lots and 16 twin homes. This approval creates 33 single family homes and 14 twin homes in phase two and 10 single family homes and eight twin homes in phase three.
• Approved a development agreement with Radio Road Development for a public water and sewer utility extension to serve Brookgreen Townhomes.
• Approved just shy of $100,000 in reconditioning costs for the city’s vactor truck, which city documents state may extend its lifespan 5-10 years. The cost for a replacement would be $400,000-500,000.
• Approved a consultant to help create a Safe Streets for All Action Plan. Costs for the consultant will come from a grant the city received amounting to $200,000.
• Approved a reimbursement agreement between the city and Pierce/St. Croix counties for Shared Ride taxi funds.
• Extended the Limited Term Letter of Site Control to Cinnaire for city owned property adjacent to the Mann Valley Corporate Park.
• Approved a procurement exception for a Flexible Facilities Grant.