Stearns County Voters Invited to Open House Meetings on Justice Center Project This Week

(KNSI) — Voters in Stearns County have three more chances this week to learn more about the Justice Center Project.

This week, open house style drop in meetings will be held on October 15th at Holdingford City Hall, October 16th at St. Augusta City Hall, and October 17th at St. Joseph at the Millstream Park Shelter. All of them are scheduled for 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Officials say people should stop in during those times to meet with County representatives and ask questions.

According to a press release, the state has been telling Stearns County that it must address deficiencies in its jail. Two studies concluded adding on and upgrading the facility would waste taxpayers’ money, and in June, the Board of Commissioners voted to build a new jail, sheriff’s office, courtrooms and related facilities on undeveloped land in St. Cloud outside of downtown and on green space.

There is a measure on the ballot in November asking voters to say yes or no to a proposed 3/8 cent sales tax to support up to $325 million in construction costs for public safety infrastructure. If the proposed sales tax passes, construction costs will be distributed between County residents and visitors. Since non-residents account for nearly 55% of county sales tax spending, a yes vote effectively splits construction costs between residents and non-residents.

If the sales tax does not pass, the County will raise the funds through increased property taxes, and county residents will solely fund construction costs.

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