Lawrence City Commission set to vote on moving City Hall to 6th and Iowa – The Lawrence Times

City commissioners on Tuesday will consider purchasing a building near Sixth and Iowa streets to become Lawrence’s new City Hall.

The building, at 2000 Bluffs Drive, would require about $11.7 million in renovations, plus a $4.2 million purchase agreement. This represents a total of $15.9 million, almost $4 million more than the commission had budgeted, so a future budget change would be necessary.

An inspection report on the meeting agenda shows some problems at the Bluffs building, such as water damage from unclear sources, plumbing issues, signs of rodent activity and brown recluse spiders, an aging HVAC system that will likely need be replaced and much more. The report also shows some soil erosion and problems with the retaining wall around the property, as well as some wall settlement and cracks in the concrete.

It is unclear from the agenda item whether the problems discovered in the inspection, dated Sept. 18, were considered as part of the estimated $11.7 million in work the building would need.

The Bluffs building, built in 1987, is currently owned by DST Realty MassKan LLC, and its property taxes to the city, county and school district are more than $100,000 annually, county records show. The building is currently listed for $5.9 million.

The current City Hall, at 6 E. Sixth St., was built in 1980. It is about 35,500 square feet, which city officials and consultants from local design studio Multistudio say is no longer enough space for employees.

Additionally, employees from Planning and Development Services and the Lawrence Municipal Court currently work in space in the neighboring Riverfront building, which is rented for $300,000 per year.

“Continued use of the existing building would require $12 million in renovations and would still fall short of needs,” according to the agenda item. That estimate includes $400,000 for personnel relocation during construction.

The Bluffs building would provide about 49,200 square feet of space, according to property records. There would be enough space for these departments to move under the same roof as the rest of city hall, according to the meeting agenda.

If the commission approves the purchase of the Bluffs building, the current City Hall could be sold or repurposed for a different city or community use, or its future could be studied as part of the North Lawrence Corridor Comprehensive Plan, according to the agenda.

A 10-year growth analysis on the agenda indicates the city anticipates growing to 195 employees from the 149 currently working at city hall and on the riverfront. The projected space need with this type of growth is 53,000 square feet – larger than the Bluffs building.

“This small difference is not about the design team. There are opportunities for shared space and efficiency,” according to the agenda item.

Among the questions and concerns raised by community members during the Sept. 10 commission meeting was the fact that many city employees have been working remotely, rather than inside the building, since the COVID-19 pandemic. The agenda item indicates that six remote IT employees were not included in the total of 149, but it is unclear from the information provided whether employees in other departments are also still working remotely.

On Sunday, the agenda item included only one written public comment: a letter from Downtown Lawrence Inc. Executive Director Andrew Holt and the organization’s board members. It urges the commission to keep City Hall in the city center “until a more suitable location is identified that aligns with the city’s broader development objectives.”

“The presence of City Hall in the city center contributes significantly to the vitality of the area,” the letter states. “The proximity of City Hall employees, as well as visitors who participate in meetings and events, benefits local businesses and strengthens the relationship between City Hall and downtown businesses. Moving City Council out of the city center would weaken this important connection between our civic institution and the community it serves.”

See the full agenda item at this link. See links to previous coverage below.

Also on the committee’s agenda is the discussion of the proposed redesign of the Outdoor Aquatic Center. Read more about it at this link.

The commission will begin its regular meeting at 5:45 pm on Tuesday, October 15, at City Hall, 6 E. Sixth St. View the full meeting agenda at this link.

Meetings are open to the public, broadcast on Midco channel 25 and live on the city’s YouTube channel, youtube.com/@lawrenceksvideo.

The commission is accepting written public comments until noon on the day of the meeting, emailed to [email protected]. The commission also hears public comments in person during meetings, as well as via Zoom. Register for Tuesday’s Zoom meeting at this link.

Mackenzie Clark (she/her), reporter/founder of The Lawrence Times, can be reached at [email protected]. Read more of his work for the Times here. Check out his team bio here.

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