Gov't
Council to Vote on City Hall
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Ordinance Introduced to Permit $5 Million City Hall
At this week’s Council meeting, Council Member Kim Fralick introduced an ordinance to grant a Permit allowing the city to construct Mayor Shelton’s proposed $5 million City Hall at the corner of Hooper and Sullivan Roads. At its next meeting on July 26th, the City Council will vote on whether to approve the permit and allow the project to proceed.
The City Council has the sole authority to grant the permit for the construction of the 17,000 square foot two-story building. The Mayor has announced that he will come back to the Council and ask for $4.5 million for construction costs, in addition to the $285,000 in land acquisition and $382,000 in architect fees that the Council has already approved, for a current total of $5.17 million.
Many citizens are questioning the decision to spend over $5 million on a City Hall building before Central’s comprehensive Drainage Study is completed and the price tag to upgrade and repair Central’s drainage system is determined. Approximately half of the City’s $37 million in cash reserves is already earmarked for current infrastructure projects or is dedicated to street and drainage repairs and to Central’s Emergency Fund.
If the City Council votes to support Mayor Shelton’s plan for City Hall, contracts could be signed before this fall’s City election, leaving Central’s next elected Mayor and Council with no option but to complete the project. The Mayor and Council do have the option of delaying action on the building of a City Hall for six months, allowing Central’s next group of elected leaders to listen to the citizens make that decision.
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