Federal stimulus money might pay for new Trailblazer building

One of newly inaugurated President Barack Obama’s early priorities is a proposed economic stimulus package containing an estimated $90 billion for public infrastructure projects.

The McLeod County Board hopes to snag a $1.5 million slice of that pie, should the bill pass. Commissioner Sheldon Nies said the money could pay for designing and building a combined Trailblazer Transit dispatch center and office in Glencoe, serving both McLeod and Sibley Counties.

“The money, if we don’t go after it … is positively going to be spent elsewhere,” he added.

For several years, Trailblazer has sought to move its Hutchinson dispatch center from the Hutchinson Area Transportation Services building. The offices at the HATS building were originally designed to be temporary.

Trailblazer also currently has a garage and dispatch center in Gaylord, and leases garage space in Glencoe.

Nies said combining dispatch facilities in a single location could save the public transportation agency $33,000 a year in leasing costs. He noted the proposed building project could give local contractors some much-needed work.

“I think from the standpoint of McLeod County,” Nies added, “we should support this whether Sibley comes with us or not.”

For more on this story, see the Leader’s Jan. 22 print edition.

(Jorge Sosa is a staff writer for the Hutchinson Leader. He can be reached at sosa@hutchinsonleader.com)