LETTER: WeTEC building sale makes

To the Editor:

I am sending this in response to the recent news article on the City of New Richmond that is still looking at selling the city owned WeTEC building located on West Third Street.

I live right next door and attended the City Council meetings when they attempted to sell the building to a group wanting to build a lower income apartment complex. Your article states that Van Blaircom said that the previous proposal for the site (a four-story apartment complex) would have resulted in $50,000 a year in new tax revenue, well above the $6,000 to $10,000 the site would generate if the building remained as it was.

I still have not heard a solid explanation from the city on where this proposed influx of new residents to New Richmond would have come from if the proposal would have passed for the apartment complex. The $50,000 a year new tax revenue reference seems high as most of the apartment dwellers would have just moved out of existing rental properties located in New Richmond.

The city needs to make a decision soon to just sell the property, even at a loss, and let the purchaser be on the hook for future repairs.

Hopefully, the building gets sold to a businesses that will grow in number of employees, even new residents, and this will increase the city’s tax revenue though the employees spending money to purchase food, gas, and possibly rent or purchase property in town.

Jeff Kuhlman

New Richmond

Tags: letters to the editor, opinion