By Terry Witt – Special to Spotlight
With the former City Hall demolished and the lot empty, Williston City Council members voted unanimouslyTuesday to begin negotiations with Drummond Community Bank on a $3 million loan to build its replacement.
The maximum project cost for the building has been set at $2,538,000 but the city gave itself a buffer of just under $500,000 in case something unexpected happens such as a sharp rise the cost of building materials.
Two council members, Mayor Gerald Hethcoat and Councilman Elihu Ross wanted assurances the $3 million figure was not going to be the final price for the new building.
They were assured the project wouldn’t cost that much.
Hethcoat also wanted to be assured the project wouldn’t have such a high price tag that city might not be able to afford other types of projects.
“I don’t want to see us build a building at the cost of everything else in the city,” Hethcoat said.
Stephen Bloom of Severn Trent, the city’s financial analyst, conceded the city’s budget will be a little tighter. He said the city’s budget is always tight at budget time.
Council President Charles Goodman reminded fellow board members that the old City Hall was literally falling apart at the seams.
“I would just like to remind everyone we started this because the City Hall was in crisis,” Goodman said.
He said the electrical system was suspect and probably didn’t meet code. He said the old City Hall had a hazardous chemical situation that won’t be a problem in the new building.
“We have squeezed every ounce out of that City Hall,” he said.
One woman in the audience wondered why the council tore down the old building before giving tentative approval to a loan for the new one.
Goodman responded the council was assured it had enough money in reserves to build the newest City Hall without a loan, but made a decision to borrow the money.
Old City Hall stood next to the original City Hall, which became a community room and the site of municipal elections. Both are gone now. Lippmann said Oelrich Construction is digging a hole as it searches for solid rock for the foundation. The hole may go as deep as four feet.
Ross wondered if the city preserved the 1956 wall plaque listing the names of the council members who served when the first City Hall was constructed. City Manager Scott Lippmann assured Ross it had been preserved and was in a safe place. Lippmann said the plaque would have a place of honor in the new building.
Lippmann said the old plaque consisted of about four inches of solid granite.
“We were surprised at the thickness of the plaque,” Lippmann said.
The city council went through soul searching over the past several years as it debated whether to renovate the old Williston High School cafeteria; renovate old City Hall or build a new structure.
The resolution approved at Tuesday’s meeting authorizing city staff to negotiate with Drummond Community Bank said the city was authorizing loan negotiations for “renovation” rather than to construct a new City Hall.
When Goodman was asked about the use of the word renovation instead of building, he turned to City Attorney Fred Koberlein to ask if the word renovation posed legal problems.
Koberlein asked Lippmann if the new building was being constructed on part of the foundation of the old building. It wasn’t. Koberlein said the word building could be substituted. Goodman called for a vote on the resolution using the word renovation. It passed 4-0.
