The proposed new $16 million City Hall building was one of the ongoing projects included in Punta Gorda City Council’s annual fiscal year report filed with the state at the end of March.
City Manager Greg Murray gave a brief presentation during the Community Redevelopment Agency portion of the April 3 Council meeting.
The Development Review Committee completed its study of the proposed $15,887,210 historic City Hall expansion that will replace the 1978 addition to the original 1926 building. GMC Architects and its sub-consultants submitted the DRC application and building permit in December.
At past Council meetings, residents decried the cost of spending nearly $16 million for the new building, saying the city should instead make repairs and save taxpayer dollars.
At the April 3 meeting, Punta Gorda resident Garciela Nurse criticized Council for spending too much to renovate City Hall, and said members have ignored taxpayers’ concerns and are ignoring residents on the east side of town who are feeling “disenfranchised.”
She said Council had no compunction in “closing doors” at the New Operation Cooper Street building, which serves as an activity center for the community and was built decades ago to serve Black residents.
The majority of funding for the City Hall building is coming from the 1% sales tax voters approved in past referendums.
Insurance will play another part in funding the new building, as City Hall sustained damage from Hurricane Ian and insurance payments to the city are starting to come in, Murray said.
At a Dec. 6 Council meeting, Murray said the issue of replacing City Hall was first raised 20 years ago, which preceded several members’ time on Council, including Mayor Lynne Matthews who is serving her fourth term.
In 2004, Hurricane Charley shelved plans for a new building being discussed. The subject was picked up again in 2018. Over the next several years, the city moved further along and chose GMC Architects and Chris-Tel Construction after soliciting bids.
“After 20 years, we need finality,” Murray said at a December 2023 meeting, and he pointed out that besides lacking accessibility, which is required by law, City Hall is “a sick building” that needs a lot of work.
When presented with three options in December, the majority of council members chose the most expensive option of adding a third floor.
Matthews was the lone vote for Option 2, which didn’t include a third floor. She rattled off a number of problems with the old City Hall in addition to being noncompliant with federal law.
Among her points was safety, stating that in an emergency there was no way for people to exit Council chambers safely.
Murray mentioned the dais was cramped, and he had trouble walking behind council members’ chairs.
Matthews said there wasn’t enough meeting room for her to meet with constituents, and she often had to scout around the city to find an appropriate meeting space.
Currently, city workers are working remotely at about a dozen locations. Currently, Council meets at the Military Heritage Museum on West Marion Avenue.
Another project in the annual report is the Bayfront Activity Center in Gilchrist Park located off West Retta Esplanade, which sustained heavy damage from Hurricane Ian. It previously was used by the YMCA, and the building also was rented out for special events.
That building’s demolition is still pending, because to satisfy the Federal Emergency Management Agency, an independent evaluation of the existing structure must show that damage constituted at least 50% of the value of the structure. If it exceeds what is known as the 50% Rule, the building can be razed.
Blue Sky Restoration is expected to provide its cost estimate by April 5 to the city.
Playground repairs and updates were also discussed, and the Laishley Park Splash Pad is in the report. Murray said a 4,000-gallon surge tank has been installed, subsurface plumbing has been completed, and Pebble Tec surface installation is now underway.
City staff was directed in February 2020 to replace the interactive fountain, holding tank, pump and filtration system, as they were approaching the end of their life cycle.
The presentation shows a splash pad budget of $275,000 from CRA operations division resources, $290,000 general construction $182,250 from the 1% sales tax and to make it ADA compliant and $425,000 from park impact fees, with the remaining budget being $965,105.
The A.C. Freeman House, which sustained damage from Hurricane Ian, was originally slated for repairs before being opened to the public. City staff, in conjunction with the Florida Division of Historic Resources, plan to rehabilitate and preserve the structure without doing a total rehabilitation and return the house to public use.
The 1% sales tax provided for $880,000 for rehabilitation. And $32,000 is projected to come from insurance proceeds. In addition, a state grant would provide $497,900. The remaining budget is projected at $1,287,900, and the construction manager at risk will be revising a 90% budget estimate by the end of April.
