The Crookston Housing and Economic Development Authority had a special meeting on Tuesday morning at the Valley Technology Center.
A special meeting was needed to help move the railroad spur project forward in the industrial park. “A few months back, probably earlier in 2025, the City of Crookston donated about 10 acres of land out at our industrial park to Minnesota Northern Railroad for an in-kind match for a grant they received from the state for a railroad spur,” said CHEDA’s Taylor Wyum. “As the county was working on the lot split for the donation, they came back to us with a small parcel of land that is actually owned by the Crookston Housing and Economic Development Authority. That land was donated to CHEDA by Otter Tail Power Company back in 2019 for the purpose of another project at the industrial park, which ended up not coming to fruition.”
The meeting was called, and the CHEDA board approved the donation of land to Minnesota Northern Railroad as an in-kind match for a grant they received. The City of Crookston has already donated its land surrounding property for the same purpose, according to Wyum. “Today was just to donate that land for a new project as part of that in-kind match, and it is completely surrounded by city-owned land.”
With the board approving the donation, what happens next? “We are still waiting to get a copy of the deed that will need to be signed to make the donation real and recorded with the county,” said Wyum. “Once the Minnesota Northern Railroad has the property in their name, they will continue going through the process with the state, and they are hoping to start dirt work in 2025.”