CCMIN091989 - Laserfiche WebLink

327 Ms. Mayhew commented that the staff report makes no mention of impact on the rest of the community. She mentioned that a 1983 study showed that the single, most common reason people go downtown is to transact business, and about 20% of these transactions are done with City Hall. Businesses typically center around the Civic Center, and the City Hall employees patronize the downtown businesses. If City Hall moves, all this will go, too. She added that she understood the City Hall buildings could accommodate a second story; the City could also build on the parking lot area and build a parking structure instead. Mr. Howard Neely, 448 Amador Court, mentioned that he was in favor of moving City Hall. The downtown people may be unhappy about it, but it may be the right thing to do because downtown is not big enough for a big City Hall. Mr. A1 Bronzini, 719 Main Street, said he is opposed to the move because the City offices contribute much to the vitality of the downtown area. It would deal an economic blow to the downtown businesses, most of which are owned by small entrepreneurs. He noted that the staff report made no reference to seismic requirements of the 20-year old Kaiser building. He asked the Council to look into other alternatives like building upwards or purchasing other near-by properties. Mr. Mercer indicated that Mr. Walker stated in the staff report that a new building would cost $3.5 Million more than purchasing the Kaiser Center. That would take the money away from the downtown rather than bring it in. Mr. Walker mentioned that engineers have taken a preliminary look at the building and said that as far as structure goes, the building would uphold to today's seismic standards. Any additions to the building would have to include strength for seismic requirements, which is included in the $6.5 Million remodeling cost. Mr. Tarver inquired if the existing City Hall buildings are capable of supporting a second story. Mr. Walker replied that he did not know offhand. Mr. Leo Heckathorn stated that he worked for Kaiser for many years and said he knows for certain that the Center is well built. Ms. Paula Hewitson, 2467 Via de los Milagros, inquired if the property around Kaiser could be purchased by other businesses, which would then move downtown away from Main Street. Mr. Mercer answered that the Council would determine that. Owners would have to come in and gain approval to develop their properties. If City Hall does not buy the building, someone else would. -16- 9-19-89