Juneau is getting a new City Hall location after all.
On Monday, the Juneau Assembly greenlit the purchase of two floors of the Michael J. Burns building, which houses the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation downtown. It will become Juneau’s new City Hall location after renovations.
The Assembly’s vote comes after multiple years of push and pull between city administration and Juneau voters. The city asked voters twice during recent municipal elections to approve bond debt to help pay for the construction of a brand new City Hall building. Voters said no both times.
Since then, the city put enough money aside to purchase the floors in the Burns building outright, which meant it didn’t need to ask voters to approve any bond debt. The decision instead went to the Assembly.
Juneau’s current City Hall near Marine Park fits less than half of the city’s employees and it needs millions of dollars in maintenance and repairs. City administrators have long advocated for a new space that can house all its staff and city functions.
Juneau resident Dave Hanna testified at the meeting last night ahead of the vote. He argues that there are other options that aren’t being considered.
“I really want you to do the math,” he said. “The situation has changed a lot in Juneau, so there are other opportunities lurking out there also.”
The cost to purchase the floors is $10.2 million. Renovation costs could add more than $7.5 million. Assembly Members Ella Adkison and Neil Steininger were the only two members to vote against the purchase. Assembly member Wade Bryson championed the plan.
“CBJ owning our City Hall is the most fiscally responsible action that we can do,” he said.
The renovations and move to the new location are expected to take at least a year, according to city leaders. The final cost of renovations will be determined in the coming months. It’s unclear what will happen to the current City Hall building.
