The city will ask Juneau residents again whether to fund a new city hall.
At a meeting Monday night, Assembly members voted to put a $27 million bond proposal on this October’s ballot.
“A new facility would have a number of positive attributes for the city and our citizens,” City Manager Rorie Watt read from the ordinance. “An end to office space rent payments in excess of $800,000 annually, the freeing up of historic apartment spaces and the ability for customers and employees to do municipal business in a more efficient manner.”
Last month, the Assembly also authorized the city to spend $50,000 to advocate for the project through presentations, postcards and social media posts. That came after Juneau residents narrowly voted down the city’s request to borrow up to $35 million for the city hall project last year.
Juneau’s city hall needs several interior and exterior repairs, and it’s too small to fit all city staff. The project is expected to cost $43 million, and the Assembly has already appropriated $16 million for it. If the bond doesn’t pass, the Assembly could reallocate that money.
The city’s preferred location for a new city hall is 450 Whittier Street, across the street from the state museum. According to the ordinance, the city doesn’t expect to increase the property tax mill rate if the bond passes.
The city could also get some money by selling the old city hall. Nearby buildings have sold for more than $3 million.
“A new structure would be more economical to maintain, as the existing city hall is one of our most expensive municipal buildings to maintain,” Watt said Monday.
But according to a 2022 economic analysis of the project, overall operations costs would increase. That’s because the city’s rental agreements at other office locations include energy, water and garbage costs in the rent.
“Because the nearly 50,000 square foot new building will be significantly larger than the current city hall building, costs will increase in every operations category,” the analysts wrote.
Six Juneau residents spoke at Monday night’s meeting about the bond. Some questioned the ethics of city staff advocating for a project voters rejected last year.
Downtown resident Sally Wilson said she wanted the city to present a more complete picture of the project costs: the price of getting the existing city hall suitable for sale, fees related to breaking rental agreements at other office space and maintenance costs at the new building.
“I’m not advocating for a new city hall, I’m not advocating against a new city hall,” she said. “But I do want to stress the importance of trying to present all of the financial costs and benefits relating to this project.”
Municipal election day is Oct. 3.
