HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014 02-06 Senate bonding tour set to hit the road STAR TRIBUNE Senate bonding� tour set to hit
the road
Blog Post by:Jennifer Brooks
February 6,2014-5:57 PM
Minnesota Senators are hitting the road later this month:The road,the bridges,the
community centers,the zoos and other sites around the metro area,all hoping for an infusion
of funds from this years bonding bill.
Gov.Mark Dayton has asked the Legislature to fund almost$1 billion in state-backed
construction projects this year,and communities around the state are lining up with ideas
about how that money could be spent.
The Senate Capital Investment Committee will tour the metro area from Feb. 18 through 21
Planned stops on the bonding tour include Century College in White Bear Lake,the Tubman
Center East in Maplewood,Fort Snelling,the Minnesota Zoo,Higher Ground in Minneapolis
and St. David's Center in Minnetonka.
The Senate's Build.MN site outlines these projects and hundreds of others around the state—
universities want money to build new classroom buildings,communities need money to
expand their convention centers or restore crumbling historic buildings or repair a dam.
Non-budget years at the Legislature are traditionally bonding years,although many House
and Senate Republicans are balking at Dayton's$986 million proposal,and hoping for a more
modest bill geared mainly toward essential infrastructure projects.
The first bonding hearings will begin as soon as the Legislature returns to work Feb.25.
m20w Star Tribune