St. Cloud Council Approves Annexation for County Justice Center Land

(KNSI) – Tucked inside the consent agenda at Monday’s St. Cloud City Council meeting was a vote on annexing the land for the new Stearns County Justice Center.

Council President Mike Conway says it is a legal requirement for the facilities to be inside the county seat. “This is pretty symbolic, to just say, ‘Okay, that land has to be annexed into St. Cloud,’ because the county seat is St. Cloud and that’s where the county offices have to reside.”

The land was previously part of St. Joseph Township. The two towers housing the jail and courtrooms will sit on 78 acres near County Roads 75 and 134. The county believes it is cheaper to build on an undeveloped lot than to try to expand current facilities downtown.

The city had previously written a letter to the county board of commissioners asking them to keep the facility downtown. Conway is fine with the current path, but he was opposed to early plans to move just the jail. “My concern has always been in working with the county is if you’re going to take it, take it all, don’t leave us holes to fill.”

Conway says it would be a redevelopment nightmare if only the jail had been moved, as the lot would be too small for many projects. The administration building and historic courthouse were always guaranteed to remain, and Conway expects interest in the rest will be high when it is made available.

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