Downtown Grand Forks is surging - maybe the most it has since after the 1997 flood.
New development announced last week will bring millions of dollars of investment downtown, both at St. John’s block - where renovations will make way for condos, “micro lofts” and remodeled commercial space - and on the corner of DeMers Avenue and Fifth Street, where a new building would include a Hugo’s grocery store and an Alerus branch, topped by dozens of apartments. Documents prepared by developers show that, combined, those projects could bring well over $10 million in added property value to downtown once construction is complete.
That’s in addition to long-expected development elsewhere downtown. It’ll take more than a $7 million investment to build a five-story mixed-use building at what was formerly Arbor Park, at 15 S. Fourth St. City leaders say development should come soon at the unoccupied corner of DeMers Avenue and Fourth Street, where JLG Architects is expected to relocate above commercial space in a new building that could bring a roughly $6 million price tag. And developers have expressed interest in two new buildings adjacent to the TownHouse hotel - one mixed-use and another residential - that could signify millions more in investment.
And that’s not counting the $8.5 million “housing first” project , which offers permanent supportive housing for chronically homeless tenants, under construction at the corner of Walnut Street and First Avenue South, or the $6.5 million reconstruction of downtown DeMers Avenue , largely funded by the federal government, set to roll through Grand Forks in 2020.
“This is fantastic news for the city. It’s the most construction the city will have seen for over 20 years, since the flood,” City Council member Bret Weber said. “It’s a clear demonstration that Grand Forks is moving into a new phase. We’ve been talking for a long time about not just surviving in the aftermath of the flood, but thriving. These things take a while to happen, but it’s about to happen in a really big way.”
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Downtown development has not come without growing pains. At Arbor Park, already razed for construction, there were many months of controversy about the park’s aesthetic charm. Those started soon after the development was proposed in 2016 and ran through arguments before the North Dakota Supreme Court, which weighed a dispute over a referendum deciding the park’s future.
But there are just as many cheerleaders for downtown development, including Gov. Doug Burgum, who has encouraged cities around North Dakota to build denser, more vibrant downtown areas. Not only have proponents argued they’re more fiscally effective - coming without road and utility construction that accompanies fringe development - but they’re a draw for young, talented workers the state needs.
City Council President Dana Sande said this kind of downtown development is crucial for the city’s future - especially as large retail stores leave, like Grand Forks’ Macy’s did last year.
“I personally believe we’re going to lose all of our big-box stores at some point, and therefore the (downtown) niche stores … are going to becoming very important,” Sande said. “I think downtown is the natural place for those sorts of businesses. And having people downtown is what it’s going to take to support those kinds of shops.”
Sande added concern for the city’s budget, stretched thin enough for city leaders to reduce 2018 pay raises for staff . Even though many new projects will receive some form of tax incentives, he said, the revenue they provide after will be a big help.
“Even a small (2019 salary) increase is going to be difficult, because we just haven’t seen the additional revenue,” Sande said. “Talking to the city assessor, property values haven’t increased at the rate they have in the past. We’re not going to see a lot of additional property tax revenue due to revaluations.”
There’s still more to come. Perhaps most notably, City leaders have begun to eye the downtown site of Grand Forks’ current water treatment plant, which will become ripe for development in coming years as the roughly $150 million water treatment plant on the city’s western edge is completed.
But in cities around the country, denser, high-value growth has often brought consequences for communities’ most vulnerable, driving up costs of living for impoverished residents. New York City and the San Francisco Bay Area are perhaps the most nationally famous examples of this dynamic - one that’s still on City Council member Weber’s mind, even as he lauds investment in Grand Forks.
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“Unfortunately, the reality is that anytime you’ve got something this dynamic happening, there tend to be winners and losers,” he said. “We need to be really careful in making sure the wealth is spread around, and that this benefits as many people as possible and harms as few as possible.”
