TOWER— The city council here gave approval Monday night to a $1.23 million bid from Valint Construction to build a new rental hangar at the city’s airport. The big question still hanging over that decision, however, is who approved seeking bids for the project and when.
At the council’s meeting in March, council member Bob Anderson had suggested pausing the hangar project given the large number of city projects already slated for the coming construction season. At the time, Mayor Dave Setterberg suggested waiting for the design documents and engineer’s estimate on the project before deciding whether to proceed — and that’s how the meeting adjourned.
The council took no action on the project at its following meeting on April 13, although a brief note in the in the council’s meeting packet stated that the final designs would be available for review soon.
Yet six days prior to that council meeting, the company’s engineering firm, SEH, had already put the project out for bid, apparently without council knowledge or authorization. Indeed, in an April 7 email to the Timberjay, the city’s official newspaper, SEH senior administrative assistant Donna Koontz submitted an advertisement soliciting bids for the project with the first publication set for April 10.
The Timberjay reached out to SEH to find out who authorized the call for bids that the firm submitted for publication on April 7. SEH had not replied as of the Timberjay’s press time. However, clerk treasurer Tammy Mortaloni did provide a copy of the city’s contract for services with SEH, which was approved in May of last year and suggested that the contract may have authorized SEH to call for bids. The contract for services did include design and preparation of bidding documents and handling of the bidding process.
Yet that’s standard with most engineering agreements in the area, and the Tower council has long taken steps to authorize various steps along the way, including approval of final designs, calling for bids, and awarding of bids.
Mortaloni has since reached out to the League of Minnesota Cities for further clarification of the process at issue. That response was unavailable as of press time.
At the council’s May 11 meeting, Anderson repeated some of the concerns he had expressed in March. He also questioned how any cost overruns would be funded and the likelihood of significant maintenance costs in the future for the building, which was being built as a rental property that city officials hoped would generate revenue to cover some airport expenses.
Anderson also asked what would happen if the council opted not to proceed with the project.
“Am I correct in understanding that if we don’t use the money that was already spent for the engineering of the hangar … if we don’t go forward with the project, we’d have to pay that money back to the government?” he asked.
SEH’s Sarah Mattes wasn’t definitive but indicated that the city might have to reimburse the federal government if it opts not to proceed. The design fee for the hangar totaled just over $98,000, of which the federal government paid 95 percent, which could leave the city on the hook for nearly $95,000.
Council member Kevin Norby said it should be made clearer much earlier in the decision-making process that opting to proceed with project design is a key decision point.
“What we need to do, I think, is to be more clear that before we do the design and actually get fiscal estimates, that we’re committing to kind of a ‘go’ here, so we might want to spend a little time with the bigger picture numbers earlier in the process,” he said.
Anderson expressed frustration. “Had I known we were going to be basically backed into a corner and forced to do this, I wouldn’t have voted for it.” Anderson had made the original motion, back in May 2025, to move forward with the design of the hangar, a decision he now appears to regret.

Project was to tap additional federal funding
SEH and the city’s airport commission had pushed for the hangar project, as well as an automated gate at the airport in order to take advantage of additional federal funding that was set to expire on Sept. 30. Currently, the Federal Aviation Administration will cover 95 percent of the cost of projects for those airports that otherwise qualify for the traditional 90 percent federal match. The state of Minnesota is kicking in an additional 2.5 percent, lowering the local cost share for airport projects to just 2.5 percent. Beginning in October, however, the federal match returns to 90 percent, which could well push the price tag beyond the council’s comfort level.
The city’s airport commission had recommended moving forward with the hangar project in early 2025 and the council approved the design work in May of 2025.
But that would not normally be the final decision on the project, since the council would have needed to review the designs and make the final decision to solicit bids on the project. SEH, on its own, lacks the authority to make that call.
In the discussion over the project and the three bids before them, council members apparently overlooked the fact that they had never seen the project design documents, nor had they ever approved a call for bids.
While the vast majority of the project will be funded by federal dollars, that still leaves the city on the hook for $33,146 to complete the project. SEH’s construction management will add an additional $95,200, bringing the total bill to $1.326 million.
The new hangar will offer short- or longer-term rental space for users of the airport and city officials hope it will generate a positive cash flow with a few years, revenue that could help provide local matching dollars for airport maintenance and improvements.
Council member John Van DeVoort said the project is a good deal for the city, since they could obtain a million-dollar asset for a small fraction of that value. He said there is interest from pilots in having a place to store their planes while in the area since they can be subject to storm damage if left unprotected. He noted that some visitors do opt to travel to the area by private planes and that they contribute to the local economy when they do.
In comments immediately after the meeting, longtime airport commission member Rick Worringer told the council that the commission had long wanted to undertake a revenue-generating project at the airport that could help offset some of the costs of maintaining and upgrading the facility. He acknowledged that operating an airport can be expensive for a small community and that the revenue generated from renting hangar space could help cover some of that cost.
“If Tower can bite the bullet, it’s a hell of a deal,” he said.

EMS business
In other action, the council approved a proposal to establish an EMS educational agreement with Fargo-based Sanford Health EMS Education to allow for ride-alongs and other training for individuals with the Tower Ambulance Service for individuals looking to pursue a career in emergency medical response. Council members suggested that the training may be a good opportunity for the city to recruit new EMTs.
In related action, the council approved the hiring of clerk-treasurer Tammy Mortaloni to serve as an ambulance driver pending completion of a CPR and emergency vehicle operations course. The ambulance service recently received a staffing hardship variance from the state that allows it to hire individuals with minimal medical training to serve as ambulance drivers.
“It’s a good opportunity to get these new EMTs oriented here,” said Norby.
The council also heard from ambulance director Jen McDonough, who reported that the ambulance had responded to 45 calls in April, including six hospital transfers. She said the department had also made progress on collecting about $30,000 in outstanding accounts.
The council also approved the hiring of Breitung Police Chief Dan Reing as an EMT, pending the outcome of a background check.

Other business
In other action, the council:
• Approved a letter of support for an application for $6.9 million in federal funding submitted by the Bois Forte Band for the construction of a roundabout at the Y intersection of Hwys. 1 and 169 and County Rd. 77. The band is seeking funding through the Safe Streets and Roads for All grant program to address the ongoing hazards at the dual intersection, which has been the site of several severe accidents in recent years.
• Approved new liquor and cigarette licenses for vendors in the city. The council also approved the fee schedule, which includes $150 per establishment for cigarette sales, $2,750 for on sale liquor, $100 for off sale liquor, $200 for Sunday on sale liquor and $25 for Sunday off sale liquor.
• Agreed that council members would engage in the annual litter cleanup as they have available time.
• Approved the agreement with the Arrowhead Regional Development Commission to conduct a joint comprehensive plan with Breitung Township.
• Appointed council member Joe Morin as noxious weed inspector for the city.
• Approved a $300 donation to the annual Old Settlers Picnic, matching the amount approved by Breitung Township.