St. Charles council may build new City Hall or expand old one
City Hall, built in 1976, could be phased out or expanded
(UPDATED)
Could a new City Hall be in St. Charles’ future?
The City Council has formed a committee to look into the city’s building needs - and erecting a new City Hall is one option that will be considered, says chairman Michael Klinghammer.
The discussion was triggered by a $7.5 million proposal by Mayor Patti York to renovate and expand the existing 33-year-old City Hall. That was included in her overall 5-year capital improvements plan for 2010-2015.
York’s proposal calls for adding on to the first floor of the building at the northwest corner and replacing the outdoor plaza to the south with a separate addition that would include new council chambers. The council is now housed on the fourth floor.
Klinghammer
“Before we spend 7 or 8 million dollars on anything, we need to look at all the alternatives,” Klinghammer said.
Council President Larry Muench said if a new City Hall was built, locations outside downtown St. Charles would be looked at - including land already owned by the city such as a tract near Fox Hill Park near Highway 370.
Among the various ideas being tossed around, Klinghammer said, is including a City Hall as part of the office component of the new residential-commercial development planned at the site of the old Noah’s Ark restaurant and motel.
Klinghammer emphasized, however, that such a proposal has not been seriously considered at this point.
Klinghammer also said he believed that moving city government’s headquarters away from downtown has only a remote chance of passage but that all feasible options will be considered.
For example, he said, the committee may look at buying an existing building downtown or elsewhere to serve as City Hall or purchasing a building to supplement the existing City Hall.
Driving the whole issue are problems with the existing City Hall building. Director of Administration Michael Spurgeon said if the council decides to renovate instead of build anew, the existing facility needs major upgrades to make it more energy-efficient and to save on utility bills.
Key work would include replacing the glass wall on the outside of the building with new more efficient materials and improving the heating and air conditioning system. Solar power is being looked at as one possible ingredient, Spurgeon said.
The renovation proposed by the administration also calls for consolidating various offices that deal with the general public on the first floor.
Klinghammer said the committee also will consider other building issues - such as a previously-endorsed plan to build a new firehouse near Highway 370; building a new public works facility to replace the existing one north of 370 and adding a second salt distribution spot to more quickly serve the areas south of Highway 70 during snow storms.
It might make sense to finance all of these at the same time in one bond issue, Klinghammer said.
Joining Klinghammer and York on the committee are Councilmen Richard Veit, Bob Kneemiller and Michael Weller. Klinghammer said he wants the committee to make a recommendation in time for the full council to act on the issue by the end of the year.
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Here we go. Get ready St. Charles, the council spends YOUR money like it has a never ending supply. Sewer/water rates went up, what next. In a recession, most individuals and businesses put off major expenditures, not St. Charles. The Council needs new chambers………
Are these people INSANE?????????
In this economy, with unemployment the worst it’s been since 1983, with folks losing their homes to foreclosure, with businesses closing all over St. Charles…..
THEY WANT A BOND ISSUE??????????????
AGAIN — ARE THEY INSANE??????
Why don’t they “investigate” the idea of using WIND ENERGY since they seem to have so much excess hot air to blow around?????
The mayor and city council should be looking at ways to cut operating costs…NOT looking for ways to spend more money. They had better remember how much of the city’s budget is being funded by gaming revenues from the boat. These funds are not guaranteed. I cannot imagine that there is anything that terribly wrong with the current city hall that would require new construction right now. These guys think their job is to see how many new projects they can get started and how much money they can spend. Take a look around the city, especially in the north end and midtown. Tell me there aren’t a whole lot of things needing attention more than a new city hall.
Dear Mr. Klinghammer, here’s the alternative.
DOOOOOOO NOTHING!
Why does the council have to make its recommendations by the end of the year? Because of municipal elections this coming spring where by several members that are currently on the board will not be re-elected. We already know that Mr. Veit is not running again and Mr. Klinghammer will surely be voted out of office. That will most likely be enough to stop the out of control spending by this current council and Mayor. Saint Charles does not need a new city hall or a community center with 3 pools which by the way none of us know what it is going to cost us in membership fees or program fees even though Mr. Klinghammer stated that he knows but will not share those numbers with us the citizens.
I think it is time that we, the citizens, taxpayers, and voters, stand up and be heard. We witness these “spenders” wanting to go out and commit more and more of OUR tax dollars to projects that really do not need to be started with our economy in the crapper. I’ll bet if we were to go to each of the council members homes and start looking around and deciding that they need a new roof, new siding, a new driveway, the entire inside of the home needs repainting, and while we are at it, we might as well completely remodel the kitchen and bathrooms and buy all new furniture, and then tell them to just get their checkbook out and write us a big fat check, or get a loan, to pay for it, they would say “what the heck do you think you are doing?” That is what I am saying, “What the heck are you doing”? We need for out leaders to act responsibly and to guard the city’s money like they would their own. We need someone to make a list of all things that need to taken care of in the city, prioritize it, and determine what really really needs to be done now, and keep it to a minimum. Then, let’s get through this economic downturn. Our leaders seem to continually get “nicety” confused with “necessity”. I think it is time to start voting out the incumbents and get some fresh ideas going on here, including the mayor.
You read it here first folks…the Recession is officially over….well it must be if they are really looking to spend that kind of money.
I don’t understand why many separate buildings and facilities are necessary. I look at the various cities in St. Charles County, and the county itself, and see evidence of sprawl with one department being miles from the other. There’s no planning and it’s all “here and now” construction that’s outgrown the moment it’s occupied. Why was a municipal complex not considered when the police department was constructed? It also seems that the main offices are diametric opposites of where the population is located. Going to Second St. in St. Charles, whether it’s for city or county business, has one commonality: it seems to be equally inconvenient for everyone and only reflects the population distribution in the Daniel Boone days.
do you posters ever stop and think?
you don’t get out of recession by not spending, a new city hall or an addition to city hall stimulates the economy not further adds to the recession…its common sense, something clearly most don’t have