Victoria MN Newspaper

STAYING ON TRACK TO BUILD VICTORIA’S NEW

PUBLIC WORKS FACILITY AND CITY HALL/LIBRARY

Jan. 27th Workshop

Council held a 5:30 p.m. Workshop to review plans and schedule for the new City Hall and Public Works Facilities.

"We are on a tight schedule," said City Manager Don Uram. "The longer we wait, the more expensive it will get. I thought the Open House on January 16th was very constructive. Nothing new came up. Efforts of staff reduced the budget to a little bit under $5 million."

Initial estimate to construct the two buildings had hovered around $9 million. Asked Mayor Tom O'Connor, "What harm, if any, was done with the $4 million reduction?"

New Public Works Facility

Mr. Uram mentioned a reduction in grading at the Public Works site on Bavaria Road. "Overall site grading would be cheaper today than down the road, but that doesn't hurt the project," he replied. "It'll be a pre-engineered steel building with a concrete base. Color is still under consideration. The building itself is 30 feet high. You will see a building. We will certainly take advantage of our tree purchase to screen the building."

"It's an economical building that will serve the needs of Public Works," he said. "It has a small office and restroom facilities in one corner. It's a very cost effective and efficient building. In addition to the heated storage, we will maintain the old building [on Stieger Lake Lane] for cold storage."

Said Public Works Director Ann Mahnke, "We should be able to put everything inside, between the two buildings."

Responding to a question about its height, Ann replied, "Driving force on height of the building is height of the vehicles."

Total building project costs for the new Public Works Facility are estimated to be $2,702,000. Total land cost (acquisition and tree purchase): $776,060.

New City Hall

Continued Mr. Uram, "We did not cut anything for City Hall. We haven't had to cut 1,000 square feet of space [as earlier thought]. He said that the library is on the first floor and City Hall and Council Chambers are on the second floor.

"The left portion of the library now has a larger window," he said. "It's in the children's play area. The window also adds to the esthetics of the building. As for the back elevation, we put in bigger windows to take advantage of the views and generate some excitement in the building. It gives a view onto the trail. This should help with concerns of individuals at the Open House."

At the Open House on January 16th, there was comment that the back side of the building should not be ugly as it can be seen by residents at the Stieger Lake Condos.

Mr. Uram said length of the City Hall building allows the city to add up to eight new staff people over time.

Tim and Beth, two people from the office of Brunton Architects, the firm working on City Hall, responded to questions from city councilmembers. Said Beth, "We're trying to be very budget conscious so there's nothing flamboyant."

She spoke of different materials used on the facade including glass, cement board, limestone, and eefus, a product that looks like stucco.

Said Mr. Uram, "There is still opportunity to select different colors."

Replied Mayor O'Connor, "None of us have exterior design backgrounds."

Click here to continue Staying On Track.