Council approves $200K land purchase, acquiring 17 acres in the Firesteel watershed for future projects

Apr. 1—The city acquired 17 acres of land in the Firesteel watershed on Monday after the Mitchell City Council approved purchasing the land for $200,000.

As part of the purchase, the city transferred 1.44 acres of nearby land to Ralph Kiner in exchange for his 17 acres along Firesteel Creek, which sits about 1 mile west of Lake Mitchell.

While the land swap was approved, a pair of council members couldn't support the price tag for the 17 acres of land. Mike Bathke was among the three council members to vote against the land purchase due to concerns that it would set a precedent on what the city is willing to pay for land within the Firesteel watershed.

"It comes to like $13,000 an acre. I don't think we are getting a deal. We are setting a precedent on what we are willing to pay (for land) upstream (in the Firesteel watershed)," Bathke said, noting he loves the project ideas but not the price of the land.

Public Works Director Joe Schroeder provided more details on the city's plans for the 17 acres of land. Among the ideas being floated around are building a wetland, injecting alum into the portion of the creek where the land sits and constructing a sediment trap.

"We would use the land to assist with our watershed cleanup efforts. We are working with Barr Engineering to look at some improvements we could make as far as nutrient and sediment removal prior to entering into the lake," Schroeder said.

In response to Bathke's concerns on the price of the land, Schroeder said the city paid $15,000 per acre for the land that the city purchased to build its ground water storage tank south of Mitchell.

Joining Bathke in voting against the land swap was Council President Kevin McCardle, who also did not support the price tag of the land.

Council member Jeff Smith pointed to the area where the 17 acres sits as the "best place" for the city to reduce sediment and phosphorus loads funneling into the lake from Firesteel Creek.

"If we truly want to filtrate the water coming into the lake, the best place for this is where it empties into the lake. There is not a better piece of property out there," Smith said.

Considering the Firesteel watershed encompasses 350,000 acres of privately owned land, the city has to rely on working agreements with landowners or making purchases to implement future phosphorus reduction projects. Smith said securing the land that is located where the creek connects to Lake Mitchell is a vital step toward making progress in the watershed.

"It's just another piece of our huge puzzle we're trying to put together," Smith said.

Council member Susan Tjarks backed the land purchase and characterized it as a response to residents who are calling for more work in the watershed.

Among the council members who have been opposed to dredging the lake, a sticking point shared among them was that the city needs to make more progress in reducing the runoff entering the lake from the Firesteel watershed.

Mitchell resident Stewart Hanson suggested the council deny the land purchase agreement and call on the Friends of Firesteel to buy the 17 acres for $200,000. Friends of Firesteel is a nonprofit that formed to help raise funds for a future lake dredging project.

"Here is a very easy solution, let the Friends of Firesteel purchase the property and donate it to the city. That would show taxpayers how serious they are about donating to the cause," Hanson said.

If the city moves forward with the plans, Schroeder said the city would seek to fund the project with nonpoint source funds.