Eden Prairie city officials appear to have reached consensus on a $26 million plan to remodel city hall, chiefly to accommodate its growing police department.
It’s not a small number, Mayor Ron Case noted this week. But it’s “doable,” he added.
“Public safety is so incredibly important, and our residents expect it,” said Case.
The cost is at the high end of a range of remodeling options and would be financed by selling bonds and paying debt, but likely without a voter referendum.
No official steps have been taken by the Eden Prairie City Council, but in an informal workshop on Tuesday, June 18, council members said they lean toward a bigger remodeling that would move not only the police department but also the facilities and information technology departments, as well as city meeting rooms.
All would move to the top floor of the Eden Prairie City Center at 8080 Mitchell Road, making the lower level available for a possible rent-paying tenant.
As recently as last fall, the city believed it could get by with a $13 million remodeling that would move its police quarters from the crowded lower level to the vacant west wing, formerly leased to UNFI and Eden Prairie Schools.
But after hiring an architectural firm to develop more detailed plans, the city discovered the price tag is $21 million to $26 million, depending on the extent of the remodeling.
That’s far cheaper than a new police building would cost, but a big enough jump to cause council members last month to raise more questions about the various options.
Since then, city staff have found ways to shave the most expensive option to about $25.34 million by sacrificing, for example, some site work that would provide outdoor secure parking for police vehicles.
Ultimately on Tuesday, council members showed favor for the more comprehensive remodeling plan that would move city departments out of the lower level, freeing it for revenue-generating tenants.
City debt, which has been on the decline, will increase again in 2026 as a result of the project. Annual payment of debt service is currently shy of $2.5 million and falling, but it would increase to nearly $3.5 million a year with this project, according to City Manager Rick Getschow. (By comparison, the City of Edina this year has a 2024 debt service of $7.88 million; Minnetonka’s debt service is about $1.5 million.)
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