Open house set for Hibbing referendum discussion

HIBBING—The city will be hosting an open house later this month as part of a multi-pronged public relations push to promote the passage of a local sales tax referendum in Hibbing this November to help pay for the cost of building a nearly $30 million public safety center in the city.

The event will take place from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 14, at the Hibbing Fire Department, 2320 Brooklyn Dr. and is designed to “allow residents to learn about the needs of the public safety departments, tour the current fire department building, ask city leaders about the proposed plan for a new regional public safety center and learn about the cost and tax impact of the investment plan,” according to a recent news release.

City officials say the “Your Safety, Our Priority” plan is to invest in a new regional public safety center that would bring together all first responder departments under one roof to provide them with the necessary resources, space and equipment.

They are asking voters to consider a half-percent local sales tax on the Nov. 5 ballot that would finance up to $19.6 million in bonds to help pay for the project.

First discussed in January 2023, the local option sales tax, if approved, would be a half a percent increase and the money raised would go toward construction costs for a proposed $29.6 million Hibbing Regional Safety Center to house the city’s police, fire and medical emergency services.

In May 2023, the city—which had sought half the project cost via state dollars—was awarded $10 million as part of the $2.6 billion infrastructure bill passed in the final hours of the 2023 legislative session.

According to information on a website the city launched earlier this spring as part of the public relations blitz, YourSafetyOurPriority.org, a local half-percent sales tax would help finance up to $19.6 million over 20 years or until the project is paid for and the average cost for Hibbing residents would be approximately $31.06 annually or $2.59 monthly per person.

The city is also looking at potential grants which, if secured, would lower the overall cost to taxpayers.

Hibbing Marketing & Communications Director Kelly Grinsteinner told the Mesabi Tribune in a previous story that a local sales tax spreads the cost of the project among residents and non-residents who purchase goods and services in Hibbing and are served by the city’s public safety departments.

“About half (50.1%) of the $19.6 million local sales tax collected for the public safety center would be paid by non-residents according to the University of Minnesota. If the projects were funded through a property tax increase, the cost burden would fall solely on homeowners, renters and commercial property owners in Hibbing,” Grinsteinner said. “If the sales tax is approved by voters this November, Hibbing residents would be responsible for less than one-third of the total project cost when factoring in the state bonding funds and non-resident contributions.”