Sunday, October 26, 1997
Passage would prompt negotiations for Greyhound
property
By ANTHONY WILSON
Staff Writer
Greyhound buses shouldn't be a roadblock to a new library.
City Manager Roy McDaniel reports Greyhound Bus Lines has indicated
a desire to move its operation at North Sixth and Cedar, freeing
the property for library parking and future expansion.
Passage of the proposed $10.5 million bond for a larger, downtown
library would prompt negotiations between City Hall and the bus
company for acquisition of the latter's land.
McDaniel stressed discussions have been preliminary -- without
mention of a purchase price -- and that he is awaiting the Nov.
4 vote before pursuing serious negotiations.
The Taylor County Central Appraisal District valued the Greyhound
property at $117,873 this year. Its acquisition is not included
in the $10.5 million bond.
McDaniel hopes to acquire the property through a trade. Otherwise,
a purchase would be funded with Tax Increment Financing district
revenues, federal grants or funds, general fund monies, certificates
of obligation, historical tax credits or some combination of those.
Eminent domain proceedings would be a last resort, he said.
"There are a lot of options," McDaniel said. "It's
a matter of timing, cost and what kind of deal we can make."
At the same time, the city would be hiring architects and engineers
to design the library, a process estimated to last about eight
months. The Cypress Plaza, the office building on the city's property
at North Sixth and Cypress, would be demolished and construction
would take an estimated 18 months.
If all went according to plan, the city would have a new library
in early 2000 -- the 101st anniversary of Abilene's first library.
City Hall has already considered options for the current facility
should the bond win citizens' favor.
Mayor Gary McCaleb stressed that the City Council has not discussed
the possibilities and no decisions have been made.
City administrators believe the joint city-county health department,
operating in a cramped 7,136 square feet at 2241 S. 19th, is the
most likely candidate to relocate in the building, though it would
probably occupy only two of the library's three levels. Other
city operations might share the remaining space, though administrators
have mapped nothing specific.
The existing, city-owned health department building might house
the sexually transmitted disease clinic or the Women, Infants
and Children program, Community Service Director Mike Hall said.
Before moving anything into the old library, the city may have
to renovate the building, a project that could cost $1 million.
Asbestos abatement alone is projected to cost $30,000 per floor.
The renovation expenses are not included in the bond package.
The work could be funded one floor at a time with federal block
grants or certificates of obligation, Hall said.
Tony Neitzler, Hall's assistant, rebutted rumors the new library's
construction costs will exceed the $10.5 million on the Nov. 4
ballot. The bond would fund the total project from hiring an architect
to the ribbon-cutting, he said.
Bond revenues would not be used to buy library materials or
computers. City officials explain long-term financing of such
purchases would be financially foolish.
Books and materials will be bought through the city's general
fund while a $500,000 grant to the Abilene Library Consortium
is paying for some computer equipment upgrades this spring.
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Copyright ©1997,
Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps Publications
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