Gundersen helicopter hangar lease approved

The Decorah City Council has approved a lease with Gundersen Health Systems for a hangar at the Decorah Airport which will house Gundersen's Med-Link helicopter.

The vote was 4-2, with city council members Dan Bellrichard and Randy Schissel voting "no" and city council member Ross Hadley absent.

Bellrichard and Schissel opposed the lease because the city will end up paying between $250,000 to $300,000 in bond financing costs for the project.  Gundersen will pay $1 million in lease payments over a 15 year period, but will receive a 20-year lease, with no payments the final five years.  Said Bellrichard, "I have a really hard time asking the taxpayers of Decorah to pay for this."  Schissel noted the process included several changes and commented, "We're stuck in the middle and we're hung out to dry."

But city council member Kirk Johnson said the partial city funding was money well spent, since the medical helicopter makes Decorah even more of a medical center.  City council member Steve Luse agreed, saying "$300,000 is well worth the price."

Following the vote, Gundersen AIR director Stephanie Hill said they would move forward with construction on the site.