St. Joe Moving Ahead With Plans For a Community Center

St. Joseph is moving ahead with a plan for a community center.  St. Joe Mayor Adam Scepaniak joined me on WJON.  He says they plan to construct the project in 3 phases.  Scepaniak says St. Joe plans to close out their fundraising for the project by the end of this year.  He says they went from looking for larger financial donations to smaller donations from the public.

Plan for Phase 1

Scepaniak says they plan to break ground on phase 1 of the project in the spring of 2026.  The total cost of the project for phase 1 is $18 - $19 Million.  Phase 1 will include community rooms, free weight area, basketball court, and a pool. Scepaniak says since they haven't seen the appetite for donations they were hoping for they chose to do the project in phases.  He says they currently have raised $12 Million.  Scepaniak acknowledges there is gap to close but he believes they can get there.

Phase 2 and 3

Phases 2 and 3 would include outdoor pickleball courts, a larger pool (could be used by St. Ben's) and other amenities that people have asked for. The Community Center in St. Joe will be managed by the YMCA.  It will be located behind the city government center on Calloway Street East.

Municipal Dispensary

The City of St. Joe has received pre approval for a municipal cannabis dispensary from the State of Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management.  Scepaniak says the pre approval asks them to go to the city for approval, find a location, sign a lease and get their business plan in order.  He says they already have these things taken care of.  Scepaniak believes the Office of Cannabis Management has everything they need to grant St. Joe approval for this dispensary.  He says they are just waiting for notification from them that they are approved before moving forward.

Management Chosen

Scepaniak says they have selected a management company who'll operate the facility and the location they've selected is in the strip mall along County Road 75 in the same facility as Snap Fitness.  He isn't clear when the notification from the Office of Cannabis Management will happen.

If you'd like to listen to my conversation with Adam Scepaniak, click below.