FridaySeptember 03, 2010
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NEWS
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Tuesday, November 24, 2009 Mayor's not fond of old city hall By Chuck Sterling Editor The city of South Haven is waiting to hear what another study will say about its aging city hall, but Mayor John Lemke isn't keeping his feelings about the old building a secret. Lemke and the city council have for some time been looking into building a new community center-city hall on the Main Street site where the old hall has stood for 76 years. But an obstacle to tearing down the structure surfaced in September when an evaluation found it's eligible to be on the National Register of Historic Places. Now the city has to pay for a second evaluation to determine whether it can be rehabilitated or whether the city can go ahead and demolish it. The council met Tuesday, Nov. 17, with representatives of the United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development, who outlined steps to be taken under the National Preservation Act. The agency is willing to finance the project, but it can't use federal money unless the conflict is resolved. "Personally I just can't imagine anyone saying you have to keep that building," Lemke told the meeting. "It was built out of the cheapest material available" during the Depression, he said. Lemke said he planned to be there during the next evaluation to point out some of the building's flaws that examiners might not know about. "If it weren't for the federal funds we could bulldoze it tomorrow," he said. Rural Development loan specialist Brett Repulske agreed. "If you went and got a municipal bond you could pretty much do what you wanted with it," he replied. First study The first study found the building, built in 1933, is eligible for the historic places register because it has played a significant role as a gathering place, the chief community venue for celebrations and events shared by much of the population. According to Ron Omann, USDA environmental specialist, the next step is a condition assessment to arrive at one of two broad options: to rehabilitate the building or demolish it. Omann said if the assessment doesn't recommend going further, "you might be done." If the building isn't preserved, a memorandum of agreement may be required among the USDA, city and the Minnesota Historical Society. One resolution could involve taking professional photos of the building before demolishing it and placing a historical plaque in the new building, he said. Lemke pointed out that if the city had to remodel the building it would have to make it handicapped-accessible as well. The city is waiting for assessment proposals from two firms, and administrator Carol Banken said in an interview she expects them to arrive shortly after Thanksgiving. Then the community center committee or council will decide which one to hire. The assessment will cost more than the $1,500-plus the city spent on the first report. Banken said she doesn't know how long the assessment will take. But "I don't think that we'll have a public hearing before next year," she said. The council has said it won't make a decision to go ahead with the project until after it hears residents' opinions at a public hearing. Banken said the only feedback she's had from residents has been a few comments of concern about how much it would cost them personally, but not about preserving the old building. Repulske told the meeting the federal financing is in a holding pattern until the condition assessment is done. Rural Development indicated earlier that it's willing to fund a grant up to $50,000 and a 40-year, low-interest $450,000 loan. The program has received federal stimulus money from the $800 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, he said. The agency probably has enough loan money through Sept. 30, 2010, but has likely spent all the grant money received. "Loan, I think we're fine. Grant, wait and see," Repulske said of South Haven's financing. The city would have five years to spend the money. | ||||
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