GRAND FORKS – Grand Forks City Council members on Monday gave final approval for zoning changes at Ray Richards Golf Course, allowing development on the property to move forward.
The project at the golf course would include building a new apartment complex and Toptracer driving range, which could also house facilities for the University of North Dakota’s varsity men’s and women’s golf teams and coaching staff.
UND President Andrew Armacost said the project would help bring in more revenue to the golf course and would honor the Ray Richards family gift by preserving the course for the future,
as the course has already closed once before.
“It also provides greater amenities for the golfers at the golf course, because golf course users will actually use that Toptracer facility to check in for golf rounds, and it will provide them both beverage and food options,” he said.
Ryan Brooks, city planner, presented council members with an updated planned use development for the project, which includes provisions that the area of land where the driving range and netting would be located be limited to accessory use only — meaning no other structures could be built there in the future if the Toptracer facility was one day removed — and that the apartment complex be limited to 169 total units.
A few community members spoke on the rezoning during the public hearing portion of the reading. Dan Kasowski, president of the homeowners association for Garden View Homeowners near the golf course, said while the association still does not endorse the development, it would not challenge the project if approved.
“We’ve been told if we continue and happen to win this, the university may sell the golf course, and obviously we don’t want that to happen,” he said. “It’s unclear if that would happen, but the fact that it’s even on the table is very concerning to us, and we’d rather have it be a golf course going down the road.
Kasowski and the others who spoke still cited concerns, like potential increased traffic, and some also questioned if UND should be pursuing the development project at all and whether the project would have a big enough community impact to justify the City Council taking action.
Council members were still generally supportive of the project and rezoning the golf course, with council member Ken Vein saying he hopes the new development will help keep the golf course sustainable.
“The preference would be it would always stay the same, but the actuality is change is going to occur now, and it will probably continue to change,” he said. “What I’m now seeing is that this is probably the best way to move the project forward for both the benefit of the city and the community.”
Both votes related to Ray Richards Golf Course – one to replat and dedicate a right-of-way and one to rezone parts of the property – passed unanimously.
In other news, the council:
Approved $50,000 in additional special event overtime funding for Grand Forks Police Department officers and other police, fire and city personnel to help increase security at large outdoor community events. Chief Jason Freedman also presented on safety concerns for those types of events and ways the city could address those concerns, like involving more area law enforcement organizations and improving vehicle defense systems.Approved the second reading of an ordinance amendment removing cat and dog impound fee amounts from city code after a public hearing was held.Approved granting property tax exemption for renovations or remodels to 16 residential properties and one commercial property. The exemptions last five years. The combined tax savings is $57,972.Approved a request from Cities Area Transit for $152,096 in federal funding to help pay for four replacement buses for fixed route service and new video cameras for replacement paratransit buses. The funds are suballocated through the NDDOT from the Federal Transit Administration.Denied a recommendation from City Attorney Dan Gaustad to not create a new class of alcohol license for a planned chocolate shop in the Grand Cities Mall. Gaustad said most options that would allow the owner to sell bottles of wine in the store and still allow minors on the premises would also technically allow businesses like convenience stores and grocery stores to apply for alcohol licenses. The vote failed 4-3, with Danny Weigel, Tricia Berg, Tricia Lunski and Mike Fridolfs dissenting and Rebecca Osowski, Dana Sande and Vein approving. Council members encouraged Gaustad to look once more at possible options for allowing wine sales at the business.Approved creating a special assessment district for paving and street lighting for South 34th Street. The total estimated construction cost is $627,000, and the city share is estimated at $439,000 while $819,000 has been budgeted for 2026.Approved plans and specifications and advertising for construction bids for street and storm sewer repair on part of South Columbia Road. The estimated cost for the project is $485,000.Approved creating a special assessment district for reconstruction on Fifth Avenue South from DeMers Avenue to Washington Street and replacing a storm sewer there. The total construction cost for both projects is estimated to be $728,000. The city share is estimated to be $462,000 for reconstruction and $48,000 for the storm sewer, with a total $420,000 budgeted for 2026.Approved creating a special assessment district for reconstruction on 17th Avenue South from South Columbia Road to South 20th Street. The estimated total cost is $3 million. The city share is estimated to be $2.1 million, with $996,000 budgeted for the project in 2026 and $1.05 million budgeted for 2027.Approved engineering task orders for design and construction services with CPS Limited for constructing sanitary sewer, watermain, storm sewer, paving and street lights in the Grand Park First Addition development. The estimated total cost for those projects is $453,000, while the cost of the proposed task orders is $89,500. The city would cover $16,200 of the watermain project. The council also preliminarily approved creating special assessment districts, with an estimated assessment amount of $616,000.Approved a cost participation, construction and maintenance agreement with NDDOT and a construction and maintenance agreement with NDDOT and BNSF for the reconstruction of the intersection of DeMers Avenue and 42nd Street.Voted not to object to the Grand Forks County Commission’s recommendation for a two-lane roundabout interchange at the intersection US Highway 2 and Airport Drive.Approved design development and a bidding agreement with JLG for Phase 2 of the Altru Sports Complex and cost sharing of between $20,000 and $30,000 for a tournament development specialist position, in partnership with the Grand Forks Park District and Visit Greater Grand Forks. The vote passed 6-1, with Osowski dissenting.Approved accepting a five-year, 100% PILOT incentive application from Enclave Property Management. The proposed apartment complex is an estimated $13.5 million investment. The vote passed 6-1, with Osowski dissenting. The council also heard citizen comments from two individuals with concerns about PILOT agreements.Met as the Job Development Authority to approve removing references to a defunct advisory board for management of the HIVE building from its operational plan and developing a new agreement for a membership-only model instead of memberships and leases to allow for more flexibility for participating organizations.
Jordan Rusche is the government reporter for the Grand Forks Herald.