GF council rejects Fufeng project

As expected the city council last night (Monday) voted to scrap plans to bring the controversial Fufeng project to Grand Forks.

The move ends a lengthy debate over the China-based corn milling plant. It also follows a letter last week from an assistant secretary of the Air Force who cited national security concerns with locating the project in close proximity to the Grand Forks Air Force Base.

Prior to the action the council heard from over a dozen citizens upset with why it took so long to do so.  Many asked for the resignation of individual council members and staff.

Council member Rebecca Osowski says lessons should be learned with how future economic development projects are handled.  “The city and EDC should put procedures and policies in place on foreign investment to make sure we never put ourselves – or citizens – back in a situation like this.”

Council member Bret Weber says the process was followed in making the final decision.  “We never approved the Fufeng project…we approved a development agreement.  When that development agreement proved we couldn’t move forward we voted to terminate that.”

The council voted 5-0 to stop the project with council members Kyle Kvamme and Tricia Lunski absent from the meeting.