City staff wants to put $270K into Block building

FORT MADISON – The Fort Madison City Council will hear a proposal from city staff to put a quarter million dollars into the James Block Building downtown.
According to a report issued to councilmembers last week, City Building Director Doug Krogmeier and City Manager Laura Liegois are recommending that the council put the money into the building to extend its life and increase the chances for getting the building in the hands of a developer at some point.
Demolishing the building would cost the city about $500,000 according to city estimates.
The city has a quote from Schickedanz Construction to repair a side wall and do some roof stabilization for $165,000. An alternative bid for repairing the wall and then providing a complete roof replacement including removal of the cupola was submitted for $270,500.
The city has already put $193,000 into the building and has secured a $100,000 state grant and a $100,000 low interest loan from the Southeast Iowa Regional Housing Trust. The rest of the money would come from a $25,000 DNR grant for asbestos removal and the remainder, about $45,500, would come from the city’s general fund.
The city has also applied for an EPA grant for $350,000 for repairs on the building, but have had no response to that grant application. That would be used for a complete asbestos abatement of the building and additional environmental work on the structure.
A committee of several city councilmembers and community members was established when a development proposal with Barker Financial out of Iowa City fell through. The Barker group is the entity that finished rehab on the old Lee County Bank building, the Cattermole Library, and several other buildings downtown.
According to the report, the committee is recommending the city move forward with the $270,000 plan.
The city is up against a deadline of May 17th to show work has started on the building and request a drawdown against the grant. If that is done, the grant can be extended. If the city doesn’t move forward with the repairs, the iowa Economic Development Authority will rescind the $100,000 grant.
The report also shows that Schickedanz has indicated there could be additional needs once the work begins, but they have submitted a bid that will not result in much of a profit margin.
“He does not intend to earn much overhead, rather, he is offering a commitment to community pride with a bid so reasonable,” the report indicated.
Other action scheduled for Tuesday’s regular meeting includes:
• an update on the Tri-State Rodeo Summer Roundup concert series.
• considering a resolution for a public hearing on May 20th to update the city’s fireworks ordinance to reflect current state code that allows fireworks on July 3rd-4th and Dec. 31. The new state legislation supercedes local codes on those three days.
• considering a three-year agreement with Fort Madison Rodeo Corporation for the Summer Roundup Concert Series.