Commission Meeting Minutes

Discussion regarding the Growth Management Department moving to the library facility in lieu of constructing a building adjacent to Town Hall

Growth Management Director Thad Carroll said that the idea to move the Growth Management department to the library stemmed from Public Works getting a much higher than expected bid for a project. With evidence of higher costs, the price of constructing a new building has gone from a projected cost of $1,900,000 to an estimated cost of $3,000,000. It was after that supposition that the possibility of utilizing excess space at the library came into focus.

Bill Lawrence, Thad Carroll, Aly Herman, John Pearl, and C.T. Eagle toured the library. Ms. Herman suggested having Growth Management occupy the children’s library space and move that library upstairs giving them more room to expand. Also, it would allow easier access to Growth Management by the public and it would give the department about three times the room they have now. Those on the tour all thought money to construct a new building would be a waste when so much open space already exists in the library. They agreed that this option would be good for both staff and taxpayers.

The library is only one mile south of Town Hall so with ample notice, the public should not be inconvenienced by Growth Management’s move. The construction costs would be minimal and easy to cover with the budget of $285,000 for this year. The children’s library could move in October followed by Growth Management’s move.

Ms. Herman stated that Sumter County has discontinued their youth programs so they will be able to use a larger space to accommodate the children from Sumter.

Commissioner Kussard said she did not like the idea at first but after Aly gave her a tour, she realized that there was a lot of wasted space at the library. Also, she knows that Growth Management is very cramped and in the new space they will have plenty of room along with meeting rooms.

Commissioner Holden was similarly in favor of the idea and added that they have the room so why not utilize it.

Mayor Rietz was also in favor of the proposal as was Commissioner Freeman

An architect was among the respondents to RFQ 2022-001 and once the Commission approves those who responded to the Town’s request for engineering continuing services, he can be contacted to give us a better idea of cost and time. C.T. Eagle said an interior build-out is not a big deal like a new build since they do not have to deal with critical elements.

Finance Director Winegardner added that once Growth Management vacates their upstairs location, her department will move into that space and combine staff from Utilities with Finance since Utilities falls under their umbrella. The Human Resources area will then expand into the Utilities area.

Mr. Carroll provided a floor plan of the library that made it easier to visualize the changes.

There was consensus to move forward with the proposal and once the architect is on board and can provide more details, come back before Commission.