Osseo Weighs Options for New City Hall, Police Station
Osseo’s city government has operated out of the same building since the 1960s. Now, city leaders say city hall and the public safety building are ready for a revamp.
City council members are hoping to move the police department into a former newspaper office building down the street.
Shane Mikkelson, the city’s police chief and interim city administrator, says the project comes as the city’s need have evolved.
“We’re really starting to see this building — especially city hall — show its age,” Mikkelson said. “For city hall, it’s an age issue. For the police department, it’s just people. We don’t have enough room to fit the people we’re hiring and adding on into the department.”
City leaders say Osseo’s current facility, built in the 1960s, is ready for a revamp.
Since last July, the council has been discussing the city’s aging facilities. Council documents show that the council approved a proposal from Oertal Architects to conduct a facility needs assessment back in August.
“It was about our community,” Mikkelson said. “What does our community deserve? What does our community want? And what is our community looking for in the future?”
Reconstruction Options
Oertel Architects presented a number of options at a city work session on April 29. The options, presented as designs A-D, consider the current spaces available and future needs.
The concepts are all framed around the same three locations: the current city building, Boerboom Park and the Osseo Press building. Mikkelson said the city is in the process of purchasing the press building.
The concepts also contemplate the future of a number of city government departments or entities. Specifically, they include plans for the community center, library, police, fire, administrative services, council chambers and the planned cannabis dispensary.
Osseo is hoping to have a plan in place for a municipal cannabis operation. However, the Office of Cannabis Management is still developing regulations for legal cannabis sales.
“I don’t see a better way to oversee this business option and business plan than having a city run it,” Mikkelson said of the potential municipal cannabis operation. “There is control from the public, they can make decisions on how it’s done—you know, their votes do count. And I think with city oversight that could be a great business plan for the city as far as creating income.”
Meanwhile, there are four plans being considered for the revamp or reconstruction project.
Each option varies in cost, and is subject to change.
Option A would move the police department to the former newspaper building. After that, the existing city hall would be remodeled and expanded. One of those additions would include space for a dispensary.
Option B would build a new community center in Boerboom Park and move the community center to that space. Then, the newspaper building would be remodeled to become a new library and dispensary. The third phase of the project would remodel the current city hall to become the police department and administrative building.
Option C would move the police to the newspaper building. After that, city hall would be torn down and a new city hall would be built in its place, with a new administrative space, fire department, library and dispensary.
Option D would build a new community center and council chambers. It would also tear down city hall and build a new city hall that will contain city administration, the fire department, library and the police department. The newspaper building will contain a dispensary and the library.
A more detailed report of each option, including tentative floor plans, costs and a pros-and-cons list, is available on Osseo’s website.
“Police at Press”
According to Mikkelson, the council decided that moving the police to a remote location during construction is the biggest priority.
He said the council is considering temporarily moving the police department into the Osseo Press building. It’s located at 33 2nd St. N.E., only located a few blocks from the current station.
“That’s the direction we were given,” Mikkelson explained. “Then, maybe a few years down the road, we will look at rebuilding and rehabbing this facility at city hall.”
Both options A and C would move the police to the former newspaper office.
“We need to get the costs where we need them with moving the police department and starting with that project first, then moving back to city hall maybe at a different time, not doing it all at once,” Mikkelson said.
Work won’t start until the Osseo council and city staff have fully considered their options.
Seeking Feedback
Mikkelson said citizens need to let the council know how they’d like to see a rebuild project move forward.
“We need to have involvement from our community,” he said. “We really want that.”
The city is continuing to consider ways to reduce the costs of any project.
“I don’t want to build something in my mind that wouldn’t serve our community correctly,” Mikkelson said. “These are big questions.”
The city expects to use a bond issuance to pay for the project. It will also seeking state bonding dollars to help finance the program.
Mikkelson encourages the community to contact him, city staff and council members with thoughts and concerns. He hopes to offer a forum for public comment, but in the meantime, you can reach out to local leaders directly.
Mikkelson’s contact information is on the police department’s website. The city council’s contact information is available here.
