The City of Dundas took a step closer to redeveloping the property at 215 North Railway Street, which is the site of the former CFS/Dundas Coop fertilizer plant, by conveying the property to the Dundas Economic Development Authority.
The city purchased the property in December after invoking a long held right-of-first-refusal clause with CFS. An agreement signed more than twenty years ago stated that, once CFS had received a purchase offer on the property, the City of Dundas would be allowed to match the offer. Last fall CFS informed the city that an offer had been made, and the Dundas City Council decided to match the price.
City Administrator Jenelle Teppen said the Economic Development Authority has developed a business subsidy plan for situations just like this, and the city intends to offer the site as a tax increment financing development district to make it more attractive to a developer who might have interest in working with the city. She said meetings have been had with a local developer, and the interest is definitely there.
As the property was once the site of a fertilizer plant, an Environmental Impact Study is required before more can be done. Teppen said Phase I of that study has been completed, however Phase II is a much more detailed and involved process that can cost quite a bit of money, so the City of Dundas has applied to the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development for a grant to move forward on the process.
The Dundas Economic Development Authority was revived in 2021 to invigorate business development within the city. Teppen said the group has an excellent opportunity to create something very positive for the city with this property.
“It’s pretty exciting for us to be looking at a pretty significant redevelopment project in that area. It’s the best real estate almost in Dundas, right along the banks of the Cannon. It would make a beautiful, beautiful redevelopment.”
Other projects that have involved the revived Dundas EDA include the Slumberland store at 404 Schilling Drive, and the new Tractor Supply facility scheduled to open later this year.
