Replacement of Fire Station 20, improvements for area parks likely to be sidelined

St. Paul’s proposed 2026-2027 Long Range Capital Improvement Budget (CIB) includes Pelham Boulevard and Wheelock-grotto area street work. Replacement of the aging Fire Station 20 and improvements for area parks are likely sidelined.
The CIB Committee sent its proposed budget to Mayor Melvin Carter in July for inclusion in the overall 2026 city budget. The city budget will be unveiled in mid-August.
St. Paul’s capital budget review work in 2025 centered on projects brought in by city departments, including specific brick-and-mortar requests and ongoing repair and maintenance programs. The committee, made up of representatives from around the city, received submissions and held a public hearing in June. The committee also used an online poll to seek community input.
This year has not been a typical year for the committee. The 2025 public hearing process was dominated by the watchdog group In$ight St. Paul, which used the public hearing to call out what its members consider to be wasteful spending of the recently enacted “Common Center” sales tax. Members noted that in the State of the City address delivered earlier this summer, Carter said that the city faces a “perfect storm of financial pressures on the horizon.”
In$ight St. Paul asked city leaders to defer spending on four new parks projects totaling more than $200 million. They were joined by Save Our Street, which wants the city to cancel initial spending on the plans to rebuild Summit Avenue and add a new bike and pedestrian trail.
Area street projects moving ahead to the mayor and city council in the 2026 budget include the second phase of the Wheelock-Grotto residential street reconstruction project ($12.5 million), Cheslea Heights Safe Routes to School ($800,000) and a Minnesota Department (MnDOT) project in the Eustis-Cromwell-Territorial-Wabash area. The city’s share of the MnDOT project is $900,000
The largest 2026 area project is reconstruction of Pelham Boulevard between Franklin Avenue and Mississippi River Boulevard at $13.11 million. That work will include a section of an area north-south bike route.
Some projects not recommended for funding have been discussed for several years. Replacement of Fire Station 20 at 2179 University Ave. has been discussed since Green Line light rail planning began years ago.
The station was built in 1921, with truck bay space on the first floor and dormitory space on the second. Access had to be planned out to allow trucks to safely cross light rail.
A replacement has a high price tag, at $18 million. The fire department sought $500,000 in planning funds in the 2027 capital budget, with the rest in 2028.
A second area Fire Department project that was shut out is replacement of the fire training burn building at 1683 Energy Park Drive. Replacing the training facility would have a cost of $1.3 million.
The adjacent fire training center and public safety garage was also shut out of funding. It has an estimated cost of $95 million, meaning it would likely have to be funded over several capital budget cycles.
Another area project that didn’t make the cut is $2 million to replace artificial turf fields at the McMurray Field complex. The project would be done in conjunction with Capitol Region Watershed District efforts to conduct a storm water reuse project.
Two Como Park projects didn’t make the cut. One request is for $2 million to upgrade electric service for the tow rope at the Como Ski Hill. The second was $3 million for the Como Lakeside Pavilion, for roof repairs and other physical upgrades.
A $1 million request to address accessibility and access to the historic Hamline Park playground building also didn’t make the cut. The building was designed by Clarence Wigington, the nation’s first Black municipal architect. It is the longtime home of Mosaic on a Stick.
Two area playground upgrade projects also must wait until next time. Requests were made for $675,000 each for playgrounds at Aldine Park and North Dale Recreation Center. Aldine’s playground is 35 years old and North Dale’s is 20 years old.