By Sara Strong
The lawsuit involving the community daycare issue was resolved Tuesday as the city of Luverne joined the Luverne School District and Rock County in signing an agreement.
Developer Donald Dunham Jr., Sioux Falls, filed the lawsuit May 7 alleging that the school, city and county didn’t honor the property tax abatement agreement which called for Dunham to provide space for a community daycare.
The school and county have already signed the settlement agreement which essentially means Dunham will have to pay property taxes from the year 2002 and beyond. The taxing entities will honor the abatement in the years 2000 and 2001.
The cost to the city of Luverne amounts to less than $2,000 of tax abatements.
Along with the city, county and school not honoring tax abatements over the years, Dunham won’t provide space for a community daycare.
The original agreement called for the city, county and school to abate Dunham’s taxes on the City Centre Apartments in exchange for a rent-free community daycare space.
The basement space wasn’t finished to the point where a daycare operation could start operating immediately. That’s where the local parties disagreed with Dunham on what was required to earn the abatement.
Dunham said he provided the square footage and the city, county and school said it wasn’t "finished" space for a daycare.
The original abatement agreement said in part "… renovation shall provide sufficient space and facilities, constructed in accordance with applicable codes, for a daycare facility, including infant care, of not less than 50 children. Further, that during the term of the abatement, the said daycare space shall be made available to a licensed daycare operator without rental charges. …"
The abatement would have ended in 2009, had it been carried out. Dunham purchased the former Luverne Elementary School building in 1998.
Gold’n Plump donation
Gold’n Plump executives delivered a check for $20,000 to the city of Luverne Wednesday, Dec. 4.
When the company first located in the city in 1998, it offered to be a good corporate citizen and donate $20,000 a year for 10 years to the city.
Those funds go to the Luverne Economic Development Authority and help to further economic development in the city.
Gold’n Plump employs about 200 people and plays an active role in community involvement, and encourages the same in its employees.
Kapperman clean-up
Clean-up of the Jerome Kapperman property on Southeast Park Street was back for discussion after being tabled at the Nov. 12 Luverne City Council meeting.
Kapperman said he would move the used grocery case and fixture equipment and get rid of the automobiles if he could have six months to do so. Attorney Doug Eisma represents Kapperman.
The sellable material from the Southeast Park property will probably be moved to the Edgehill salvage business.
The Kapperman property was damaged by a fire and the city has asked him to rid the neighborhood of the blight it created.
The Southeast Park site is in a low-density residential district and a salvage business cannot be operated there, by code.
Kapperman will ask the Luverne Economic Development Authority to grant him $2,500 to clean the property, as it has in other instances through a special program.
He will also return to the City Council this month to discuss specific plans for clearing the site.