01/11/1988 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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e January 7 meeting. However, board members could not agree on whether to support or oppose removal of the building and decided to forward their minutes to the State without a formal recommendation. In an effort to gather additional information, Ms. Bohman said staff contracted with Dennis McGee, an engineer who was involved with the AxBilly and Schaeffer rehabilitations. She said Mr. McGee was asked to estimate the cost of renovating the school to house both proposals. His results were $43 per square foot for construction costs alone. Other expenses increased that amount to $52 per square foot for a total of $2,495,500 for the entire project. To convert the school into regular housing units, Mr. McGee found that each approximately 850-square-foot unit would cost approximately $130,000. Ms. Bohman said the study was used as a hypothetical situation in order to have a specific use and a specific cost. She said representatives from both projects believe the building would not meet their needs. Ms. Wooten asked how much it would cost to renovate the building for a child care center or some other community use. City Manager Mike Gleason said the school district staff conducted such a study that analyzed whether part of the school could be turned into a community recreation area. He said school officials ran into problems closing off part of the bUilding because of the exiting codes. ~ Ms. Wooten said she has had inquiries from organizations interested in renovating the building for community uses compatible with the neighborhood. She said she would like some way of determining what the cost of such a project would be. Mr. Gleason said the City would have to commission a special study to explore that option. One problem when using only part of the building is the structural prohibitions with regard to fire exiting. He estimated that by the time exiting codes are met the renovation price would be similar to Mr. McGeels figures. Ms. Wooten asked what criteria PARCS is using to develop a new site for the specialized recreation program. Ed Smith, PARCS director, said the primary criteria is accessibility to the people who use the facility. He said the current location at Washington Park is not close enough to the majority of the users. The new site will also have to have paved surfaces, and be nearby playgrounds or a community center. He said the department is operating under the assumption that the Lincoln School would have to be razed to accomodate the specialized recreation program. e MINUTES--City Council Work Session January 11, 1988 Page 2