Where will Bradenton City Hall go if officials sell the property? Here are the options
As Bradenton considers selling and relocating City Hall, city officials have narrowed down the possibilities for a new home.
The City Council is weighing three offers to purchase the waterfront property and redevelop the site into different housing and retail options. Building a new City Hall will cost millions of dollars.
In a recent workshop meeting, city staff presented five options, but two of them were nonstarters for the board. Now, three sites will be researched to determine which is best.
“The debate you’re having is refreshing to me because it’s a proactive, thoughtful discussion,” City Administrator Rob Perry told board members during a public meeting Wednesday morning. “It’s a visionary discussion.”
Following a unanimous vote by City Council, Bradenton will study the viability of the three selected sites. Perry said the board could have enough information to choose a site within 60 days.
In an interview with the Bradenton Herald, Mayor Gene Brown said he was proud of the progress the board made at Wednesday’s meeting and looked forward to hearing more about each option.
“We had five sites we talked about at our workshop, but some of them aren’t ideal sites,” Brown said. “Today, we talked about the five sites again, but we did go with three sites that we’re going to get more due diligence on.”
The price to relocate City Hall won’t come cheap. The predicted costs range from $10.9 million to $16 million, and they could soar even higher if the new City Hall site includes the police department, which would also need to be relocated.
Developers have offered between $11.6 million to $14.1 million to buy the City Hall property.
Will City Hall stay in downtown Bradenton?
The only property with an existing building that could be modified or renovated to house City Hall is the Bradenton Herald’s former office building at 1111 Third Ave. W. in downtown Bradenton. The building, which sits just south of the City Centre parking garage, is on the market for $5.5 million.
The Bradenton Herald, which does not own the building, no longer uses that office space. The newspaper’s lease ended in September.
Several board members expressed interest in the building, pointing to its proximity to the parking garage and the potential to tear up the building’s 82 existing parking spaces in exchange for green space that can be used by the public.
“Green space is important, which we’ve heard at three public meetings so far,” Brown said during Thursday’s workshop meeting, noting that residents have expressed a desire for a park area downtown.
Councilwoman Lisa Gonzalez Moore called the property an appealing option but questioned whether it made sense for the city to remove the building from the tax rolls. If the city acquires the building, it would no longer generate property tax revenue for Bradenton.
However, Brown predicted that whichever project the city chooses to redevelop, the existing City Hall property will bring a significant increase to the city’s tax revenue, offsetting the city’s acquisition of private property.
Councilwomen Pamela Coachman and Marianne Barnebey also have reservations about the site. They said the building doesn’t appear to be far enough away from their current site to warrant a move.
“If you go over just a block, it still seems like prime property,” Coachman said.
In addition to the vote to narrow down the site selection, the board also voted to have a contractor complete a thorough inspection of the building to determine whether it can be renovated to meet the government’s needs.
Total projected cost: $10.9 to $14.5 million
A ‘gateway to the city’ on 14th Street
The site of an old substation for the Bradenton Police Department remains in the running for City Hall’s replacement. Board members discussed this property last year after the Community Redevelopment Agency commissioned a study to determine the economic impact of building the municipal service center on the 2-acre site.
A team of economic consultants predicted that building City Hall at 1404 14th Street West, would create $53 million in economic output while attracting more businesses and residents to a part of town that Bradenton has sought to redevelop.
“I’ve been leaning that way because of the idea of putting City Hall or a building that’s going to bring something to the area in a positive way like it did downtown,” Coachman said. “Downtown was not too appealing and then City Hall came and that changed.”
But other board members said 14th Street would not be their first choice to relocate City Hall.
“I’m personally not in favor of the 14th Street location,” said Councilman Josh Cramer. “Could that neighborhood use some help? Yes, but I don’t think City Hall is the answer.”
Moore also wondered if building City Hall across the street from the Met affordable housing apartment complex that is under construction would be the right decision.
Councilwoman Jayne Kocher said she would be willing to consider the 14th Street site because building City Hall there gives Bradenton a chance to enhance the “gateway to the city.”
Total projected cost: $13.4 to $16 million
Another City Hall, police station combo?
The largest property under consideration is at the intersection of Sixth Avenue West and Third Street West, also known as the water tower site across from the School District of Manatee County’s administration building.
It could also be the most expensive choice.
In a report prepared by city staff, the 5.6-acre site could potentially serve as a City Hall that is combined with the police station, similar to the current setup on the City Hall property in downtown Bradenton.
But questions about the environmental status of the property and the possible removal of the water tower could add to a price tag that is already higher than the other two options.
Based on preliminary plans to include the police station, the total cost of relocating to the water tower site could be as high as $30 million.
According to the city administrator, the site is a designated part of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Brownfield Program and has contaminated soil. Cleaning the property would add an unknown cost to the project.
“When it’s a Brownfield and you don’t know what the environmental issues are, it’s kind of a rabbit hole you’re running down,” Perry said. “Environmental remediation is a very costly undertaking.”
Total projected cost: $24.2 to $30.2 million
Which sites were ruled out?
Two of the options presented by city staff were quickly eliminated from contention by the Bradenton City Council. Officials said the properties would cost too much money or conflict with the city’s overall vision.
The first property to be dropped is a 2-acre site at 1416 Ninth Street West. The proposal would require the city to acquire three additional parcels that may require environmental remediation because they were previously used for mechanic work.
But council members said they disagreed with the idea of relocating City Hall to that area because it is meant to serve as Bradenton’s entertainment district.
“That’s just not part of our plan that we’ve had for a little while for what should go there,” said Kocher.
“When I look at the Ninth Street option, I’m really underwhelmed by that because we had talked about trying to make than an entertainment zone, and I can’t think of a bigger party pooper in your entertainment zone than a big government building,” Barnebey added.
City officials said they also aren’t interested in considering acquiring several properties along Fourth Avenue West, two blocks west of Old Main Street. According to city staff, six different parcels would be required to gather enough land for a City Hall building.
The number of parcels and property owners involved would likely increase costs and slow down a potential relocation, staff said.
What happens next?
City officials have given direction to have staff continue researching the pros and cons of three possible City Hall sites.
Community meetings are also still being held to share more information about the possible sale and relocation of Bradenton’s government headquarters.
The Bradenton City Council has not announced when it plans to make a final decision about selling City Hall or where its potential replacement will be located.
For more information, visit www.CityOfBradenton.com.
