Delano Herald Journal

Serving the communities of Delano, Loretto, Montrose, MN, and the surrounding area

Keeping downtown strong



Plans for the Security State Bank of Howard Lake to be relocated at the
south side of Highway 12 will offer residents several advantages, proponents
of the development claim.

The move, which includes proposed expansion of the medical clinic and
the bank itself, should optimize basic services along the south side of
Highway 12, keeping the downtown area strong, Howard Lake City Administrator
Doug Borglund pointed out.

“The project will keep key functions downtown,” commented Security
State Bank Vice President of Investments John Forstrom.

The development is the boldest move in recent history by the Howard Lake
City Council, which required eminent domain proceedings on lots contained
in block 17 and half of block 16 along Highway 12.

The project is part of a vision for vigorous Howard Lake development
that will take advantage of expansion and growth in the next several decades,
Borglund said. It will strengthen the downtown area and solve several problems
at once for the city and bank.

The move has stirred controversy, since it displaced two businesses,
and affected four residential structures there; although two of the residences
were in dire need of repair.

The idea to relocate the bank was conceived in March when Forstrom and
Borglund compared notes about the desire for space in their respective locations,
Forstrom said.

At this time, a public workshop meeting was conducted April 30 to address
the potential new development, Borglund said.

It was attended by a handful of residents, council members and bank employees.
The meeting included a tour of the existing bank building, Borglund said.

Aside from this, the original idea to redevelop along the Highway 12
corridor has been around for about a decade, Forstrom pointed out.

Thoughts of expanding the bank started a few years ago, Forstrom said.
The bank looked at a number of sites along Highway 12, including one by
Dura Supreme, but none appeared suitable, Forstrom said.

The bank’s facility was remodeled in 1995, when it had $18 million in
assets, Forstrom said. Now, the bank has $50 million in assets, he said.

Currently, the bank’s facility holds 5,000 square feet, and it will expand
into 8,000 square feet.

The proposed medical clinic, which currently holds 1,200 square feet,
will expand into a facility with 3,000 to 5,000 square feet, Forstrom said.

The bank desires to enter into a long-term lease arrangement with the
clinic, Forstrom said.

Councilor Shelly Reddemann pointed out at a past council meeting that
when a business like the bank needs to expand, it usually only finds a suitable
place outside of the downtown business district, as demonstrated by other
cities in the past.

Delano is an example of this very scenario, with the State Bank there
leaving the downtown area and moving to Highway 12, Forstrom pointed out.

“It’s the end of the old downtown area,” when this happens,
Reddemann said. This way, everything remains within reach of citizens, including
the post office, bank, and city offices in close proximity to each other,
instead of fragmenting the business community, he said

A new 1,200 square foot foyer is planned for the proposed new complex,
which will offer an upscale meeting place with a possible coffee shop, or
small bakery, for the community, Forstrom said.

In what will be the new city hall offices (the former bank building),
the city council will be able to meet there instead of the community room,
Borglund said.

The proposed bank/clinic site will be approximately two acres, Forstrom
said. This amount of space is needed for the required parking of employees
and customers, for today’s size operation and for the future, he said.

The cost of the project is unknown yet, until the clinic makes a decision
about how much space may be leased from the bank, which determines the size
of the building, Forstrom said.

Demolition will commence of the properties in blocks 16 and 17 in the
next few weeks, and the bank plans to complete purchase of the lots from
the city by the end of the year, Forstrom said.

The bank plans to break ground for its new facility in the spring, with
occupancy to be had in the spring of 2003.

Currently, all of the services for the city are crammed into the first
floor of the city hall building, Borglund said.

This move will also enable the city liquor store to expand into the city
hall building, and will increase the space for city administrative services
by almost ten-fold, he said.

The bank building has handicapped accessible facilities, a vault that
the city can use to keep documents, more space for the community to use
for meetings, additional room for the police department; all available without
down time from construction, Forstrom said.

The administrative offices currently use 560 square feet, and 120 square
feet for the police department, Borglund said.

The increase in space will allow the city to prepare for the next 20
years by moving into the bank’s building, complete with furnishings, he
said.

The move will also keep the Howard Lake Lions intact on the second floor
of the city hall as well, Borglund said.

· The project will solve space needs for the city and bank, which
are both experiencing growing pains. The bank will almost double its current
size.

· The project will have no tax impact on the public in the immediate
future and less of an impact over time in relation to the city hall renovation,
since the city is buying the existing bank building at a substantial savings
than it would be to build, renovate or add on to an existing structure for
city administrative needs, Borglund said.

· The new complex will offer a larger, well-equipped bank, a proposed
larger clinic, and a new community foyer with possibly a bakery, coffee
shop, or other meeting place to be used by the public.

This will facilitate the need for additional employees for both the clinic
and bank, Forstrum said.

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