Mary Hansen
The State Journal-Register
Four large windows on the second floor of the former National Museum of Surveying provide a sweeping view of the Old State Capitol. Aldermen and neighborhood groups got to see for themselves Friday, as representatives of the Bank & Trust Company of Litchfield, which owns the building, took them on a tour.
In advance of the next Springfield City Council meeting, Mayor Jim Langfelder wanted to show them the 40-year-old building on Old Capitol Plaza that he has proposed buying with $425,000 in tax increment financing money to turn into a community center.
After touring the building and hearing more about the project, aldermen and economic development commission members continued to question the wisdom of using city money to buy real estate. Aldermen put the ordinance on hold at last Tuesday’s committee meeting, but Langfelder said he hopes to have a vote on it at the upcoming meeting.
The bank’s offer is only good until the end of the year, the mayor said. So the council would likely have to approve the TIF money to buy the property at that price at its final meeting of the year Tuesday.
“I think it’s a very solid building with significant usable space, on all levels,” said Ward 7 Ald. Joe McMenamin, who walked through the two floors and basement Friday afternoon. “But it would be a mistake for the city to purchase the building.” A major concern is what it would cost the city to maintain the building, McMenamin said.
Tax implications
According to a plan presented by Langfelder, the former museum would house the Springfield NAACP, space for a media center run by Benedictine University and an office for the downtown neighborhood police officer. Combined, Benedictine and the local NAACP promised to contribute $37,000 annually toward rent and utilities, according to letters of support submitted to the city.
Monthly electricity costs fluctuated between $1,500 and $3,000 when the building was last occupied, said Larry Halleman, a Bank & Trust Company representative who led the tours.
Langfelder said he was hesitant to use city resources on the project and wanted to seek foundation grants to help pay for activities at the center. “It’s a community project. It’s not just about the city,” he said. Still, city ownership would mean no property tax would be paid on the building.
Some members of the city’s economic development commission, which reviews TIF proposals, raised the same concern at their meeting this week.
Need more details
Michelle Ownbey, a development commission member and president of the Enos Park Neighborhood Improvement Association, also worried about using TIF money for a project that wouldn’t generate revenue. The proposal for funds did not provide many details, she said.
The city offered three letters of support from its partners that would occupy the building, a four-page presentation outlining the goals and support for the project, and 2016 property tax information.
“With what we heard about the city’s proposal, if that was any other developer, we would have said you need to go back and do your homework and come back with more complete information,” she said.
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McMenamin said that if the city is looking for a building for a community center, there are other options. “If the city needs space, it would be more prudent to lease space,” he said. “And if the city would choose to lease space, we should put that out for bid.”
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Joe McMenamin for Ward 7 