After a closed session that lasted just nine-minutes Monday, the Stanley Common Council moved to sell the old City building at 116 East Third Avenue, later going over revised plans for a new police addition to the current City Hall, located at 353 S. Broadway St. First though, there were the necessary motions to make.

“According to purchase contract, the buyer will maintain the clock tower,” Alderman Kevin Hendrickson said when the Committee of the Whole came out of closed session. With the motion by Hendrickson seconded by Alderwoman Laurie Foster, the old City building built for $6,900 in 1900 by Harding Freeman Allen, was recommended for sale to Joshua Sudbrink for $50,000 in 2020. Hendrickson and Foster also made the motion and second to sell the property under regular agenda item number 11: Approve/Disapprove any items recommended by the Committee of the Whole from closed session.” Tabled from the closed session was any recommendation of what to do with regards to a potential land sale including the alleyway west of Don Smith’s and otherwise stretching Fifth Avenue north along the west side of Broadway.

Photo by Joseph Back.

“We haven’t heard anything new on that,” Mayor Al Haas said of a potential land parcel sale to Stanley Truck Sales Inc. With that it was into a discussion of the revised plans for the police addition, and state bureaucracy.

The council rejected bids for previous designs at the meeting and will review final plans and costs for revisions at the facility.

“It’s not what you think, it’s what the code states,” Alderwoman Holly Kitchell said of the building requirements to be met. Kitchell presented the revised plans together with Alderman Mark Fitzsimmons, as other council members shared their thoughts on the matter. “I’m pleasantly surprised,” Alderman Kent Barby said of the revised plans, which would remove the third vehicle door from the squad area, turn an interview and training room in the old plans into police office space, and create a meeting room out of the present police quarters in the present City Hall, among other changes. Hendrickson also had some input.

“I think it makes more sense for everybody’s needs,” he said of the plans, which include a break room for city employees along the east wall. Talk was made of using the meeting room for committee meetings and possibly for voting as well, with overflow parking across the street, should this be needed. Not everyone was pleased though.

“It looks good, but you’d have to switch the cars around,” Foster said of losing the third vehicle door, with two squads positioned behind the door on the north end. “It creates a hassle,” she said. Meanwhile, Chief Lance Weiland was happy with the evidence room.

“I have no issue with the size of the evidence processing room at all,” he said. Rather, his biggest fear had been losing the third vehicle bay, as it was stated that K-9 Officer Trey would need a place to stay when on-site. Speaking of lodging, there was a kennel on the north wall, while the alternate #4” in the original plans had called to “provide and install chain link fence” for Officer Trey, directly in front of evidence processing and storage to the east. Meanwhile, any fear of the winter cold moving in when moving between sections had been taken away with the merging of the present roofline to that of the addition in revised plans, with the breezeway replaced by a common corridor opening to the west. It might take extra framing, but it could be done. Jacob Huff had a question of his own.

“Was this revised to save money or spend more?” he asked of the plans under discussion. With square footage taken off both the back and front of the revised plans for the police addition, it would align with the present edition on the west and east sides but might require another submittal to the state. Cory Scheidler of Cedar Corporation said that he would have things ready in two weeks—including any necessary council motion—but that much depended on whether the changes were classed as a minor revision or more serious. Towards the meeting’s adjournment, it was time to approve the sale of the old City Hall. Administrator-Clerk-Treasurer Donelle Spaulding read out the roll and it was sold, pending terms and conditions, along with removal of any personal property.