Wahpeton council elects leadership, eyes SPARC design and 2027 budget ahead
The Wahpeton City Council swore in members and elected Jason Goltz as Council President and Tiana Bohn as Council Vice President at its July 6 organization meeting, with all votes recorded as 'aye.' The council also confirmed 2026 appointments to several boards and referred the 2027 Preliminary Budget and Tax Levy to the Finance, Personnel & Economic Development Committee.
Council leadership and appointments
The council approved Goltz as president and Bohn as vice president, each by unanimous 'aye' vote. Committee appointments and consent agenda items, including minutes of June 15, 2026, were also approved unanimously.
The council confirmed 2026 appointments to the Airport Authority, Library Board, Golf Board, Planning Commission, Convention and Visitors Bureau, and Zoning Board of Adjustment, all by unanimous vote. A motion to amend the confirmation to include re-appointments to the End of the Woods Task Force Board also carried unanimously.
SPARC recreation center discussion
Public testimony at the July 6 meeting addressed the proposed Southern Prairie Activity and Recreation Center (SPARC), including discussion of the number of gym courts and amenities planned and its overlap with the Infinity Center in Breckenridge. No decisions on SPARC were recorded; minutes for that meeting have not yet been published.
Games of Chance licenses
The council's agenda included approval of Games of Chance licenses for Head of the Red Youth Activities and BW Blades Youth Hockey. Vote tallies for those items were not available in the provided record.
Special meeting and executive session
On July 13, the council held a special meeting and voted to close for an executive session under NDCC 44-04-19.1 for attorney consultation regarding legal strategy. The motion to close carried. After reopening, members voted unanimously to end the closed session, and the meeting was then adjourned. No substantive policy decisions were made, and no motions were recorded during the closed session.
Committee agendas: budget, construction contracts
The Finance & Personnel Committee is scheduled to discuss the 2027 Preliminary Budget and Tax Levy and review committee referrals. The Public Works & Public Safety Committee agenda includes a Construction Management at Risk contract with Comstock Construction, Inc.; quotes and an award recommendation for the 2026 Concrete Repairs Project; Well Field Project change orders; and disposition of the Wausau snowplow from the 2009 Sterling plow truck. Minutes for these committee meetings have not yet been published.
Coming up
On July 20, the City Council will hold a joint meeting with the Park Board to review schematic designs for SPARC. The agenda also lists a Construction Management at Risk contract with Comstock Construction, Inc. for the SPARC Project; a Preliminary Certificate of Levy for the 2027 budget at $2,433,883; a 2026 Concrete Repairs Project bid award of $28,364.58; a Well Field Project contract change order with KPH, Inc. for $750; and the June 2026 Bill Pay Report of $1,658,728.27. The Finance & Personnel Committee and Public Works & Public Safety Committee meetings are also scheduled on their regular second and fourth Monday rotation.