On December 15 both the Redmond City Council and the Redmond Urban Renewal Agency Board unanimously approved funding to begin work on the transformation of the Evergreen Elementary School site into a new City Hall/Civic Center. Skanska Construction will provide the Construction Manager/General Contractor (CM/GC) services for the $11,730,000 rehabilitation project, expected to be completed in early 2017.
“This project has been a high priority for Redmond for many years,” remarks Mayor George Endicott. “It presents an opportunity to reactivate an iconic building in the heart of downtown, create a permanent home for City Hall, and open up the existing City Hall site for private redevelopment.”
The City purchased the abandoned Evergreen building from the Redmond School District for $250,000 in 2011. Three structures sit on the three-acre site. The redevelopment will occur in the main building (35,500 square feet) which was constructed in 1922. The newer annex building to the north will be demolished and the gymnasium/field house on the southwest corner of the block will remain but will not be used or receive any investment at this time.
The approval also clears the way for the urban renewal agency to proactively secure a partner to redevelop the current City Hall site into a privately owned Family Entertainment Center. The result would bring dual benefits of reactivating a large vacant historic building; as well as generating taxes, jobs, and other positive activity on the current City Hall block.
“The City has been fiscally cautious and measured in how and when we move forward on Evergreen. To date we’ve successfully balanced investing in Redmond’s future in a manner that does not increase taxes or reduce City services” stated City Manager Keith Witcosky.
The approval commits the following City fund sources to the project: $6,700,000 of General Fund bond proceeds (secured in July 2015 for the project), $450,000 Capital Projects Reserve (reserved for the project), ($2,380,000 from the Downtown Urban Renewal District (secured via bond issuance in April 2014)), $1,000,000 of General Fund reserve (budgeted in FY 14/15 and FY 15/16) and up to an additional $1,200,000 of General Fund reserve to be budgeted for in FY 16/17 (via the budget process). The additional General Fund reserve of $1,200,000 is not anticipated to impact ongoing service or operations of the City and will likely have a minimal impact, if any, on future financial flexibility and investments.
To date, the City has spent $600,000 on soft costs (architectural design, engineering services, structural testing, and development fees), $75,000 on internal demolition for sleuthing purposes, and $325,000 on hazardous materials abatement. Urban renewal resources are being used to address site deficiencies and blighting influences such as the abatement of hazardous materials and seismic deficiencies on the existing Evergreen School parcel.
