Sartell City Council Approves Purchase Agreement for 167 Acres of Land

(KNSI) — The Sartell City Council Monday night approved a purchase agreement for 167 acres of land currently owned by AIM Development, LLC. That same company bought the Verso Paper Mill site and the 167 acres from Verso in 2013.

The property is along 4th Avenue South and will be held by the Sartell Economic Development Authority. The city bought the land to control the former Verso landfill on 4th, which AIM Development had proposed to reopen as an industrial landfill. Permits for that use have been confirmed by filings with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.

Litigation between the City of Sartell and AIM Development LLC has been ongoing since 2016 due to the landfill’s location close to the Mississippi River to prevent the landfill from happening. The city says it will either dig up or close the landfill, divvy up the space, and sell the property for future development so it can recoup the purchase costs.

The purchase agreement does not mean a guarantee of sale. If amendments are requested, they will go back before the city council for approval. If the agreement is approved by both the City of Sartell and AIM Development, LLC, the two sides have 90 days to meet the conditions and move forward to closing the sale.

According to a press release, the city says the old Verso Paper Mill site, also owned by AIM Development, is not included in the purchase agreement, but the 4th Avenue South purchase agreement requires AIM Development to divide the property to get ready for a known sale to a private party for future development.

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