Agenda - Council - 08/31/2010 - Special

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CASE # - a CONSIDER RESOLUTION OF FUNDING FOR RAIL STATION COUNTY TRANSIT INVESTMENT BOARD (CTIB) GRANT APPLICATION By: Kurtis G. Ulrich, City Administrator Background: Anoka County staff contacted the City about making application to the County Transit investment board for a $1 million grant to assist in funding the Ramsey rail station. This would be the first year (2011) allocation of a total of $3.2 to be requested out of CTIB funding over three years. The total project cost for funding purposes is being estimated at $15 million. The grant application is due on September 10 and awards would be made in November of this year. Observation: A positive award of $1 million in CTIB funding would put the City on track for making other funding requests. It would also serve as a positive indicator for private development that the Ramsey rail station project has support from other levels of government. The projected funding breakdown for the station is as follows: Federal $3.4 to 5.1 million State 2.0 million Metro Council 1.5 million CTIB 3.2 million Local (City and ACRRA) 3.2 million Total $15 million The City has projected $68 million in improvement costs to be funded with the COR tax increment district. Of that amount, $6 million has been projected to be contributed as the City's contribution to the construction of the rail station. Timing for the CTIB grant request does not allow the City to secure funding from the other anticipated funding partners. Funding from the Anoka County Regional Rail Authority could be negotiated this fall, but Met Council, State and Federal funding processes will likely occur in calendar year 2011. In order to be successful in the CTIB grant application process, it is advised by the County that the City make a positive funding commitment for the funds to be expended in 2011 for the project. In doing this, the City will need to negotiate with each of the funding partners to secure their later participation. There is some concern that this establishes the floor for the City's future level of participation, but without a firm upfront commitment by the City, participation by any of the other funding partners is doubtful.