City Hall Plans Move Into Old Public Library Building

BY MARIEL PADILLA
Miami University journalism student

Next year the city of Oxford’s administration offices are moving three blocks from the Municipal Building, located on 101 E High St., to the previous Oxford Lane Library building, located on 151 S. College Ave.

The current goal is to start construction in April 2017 with a completion date in November 2017, according to City Manager Doug Elliott. After the administrative staff relocates, renovations will begin in the current Municipal Building as it is transformed into an updated police station.

The city of Oxford bought the old library building in 2015 for $1.4 million, according to Elliott. He estimates both building renovations will cost the city a total of $2 million, with the funding entirely from reserves.

Space issues
The Municipal Building was built at the tail end of The Great Depression in 1938. Since then, the building has housed both the city administration, the police force, and at one point the fire department.

In 2005, MSA Architects, with offices in Cincinnati, conducted a space needs study for Oxford. The study revealed that there was a significant lack of space based on the number of personnel.

“The building is unbearably crowded,” Mayor Kate Rousmaniere said. “It’s really awful. The topic of City Hall has been on the agenda for years.”

The results of the MSA study showed that the city’s administration, with 24 full-time employees, had less than half the space they should. Even more surprising, the police division, with 15 to 20 people in the office on average, had closer to one third of its ideal space.

Police Chief John Jones said, “It’s tough to find good meeting spots. There’s a lack of available space for the public, the people that are our customers.”

The administration uses approximately 8,000 square feet, far below the suggested 16,000 square feet. The police division uses 6,000 square feet when it needs 18,000 square feet.

“We’re crammed for space. We don’t have the accommodations here; they’re lacking. We’ve been overdue for a new building,” Jones said.

Outdated building
In the current building, the administrative staff is on the first floor, and the police department is housed in the basement. In addition to being crowded and cramped, the building itself needs renovation.

According to Elliott, the building is barely handicap-accessible. The roof leaks when it rains, the windows shake when it’s windy, and the heating and cooling system is inefficient.

In the basement there are flooding issues in the storage rooms that require constant vacuuming, a disruptive noise. There are also mechanical and electrical issues. The heating and air systems leak water onto the floor, resulting in stains, according to Jones.

“We’ve been in this space for awhile and without doing any improvements because we know that we’re going to be remodeling soon, which led to some deterioration of the materials here. It’s little inconveniences that add up and decrease effectiveness,” Jones said.

Renovating two buildings
On Oct. 27, Elliott met with CR Architecture & Design architects, also a Cincinnati-based firm, to review initial floor plans for both the old and new city hall locations. Changes are still being made, and final plans will not be ready until the end of the year, according to Elliott.

Architect Tim Wiley said the project is progressing nicely. "Working with the city’s department heads, we have completed the schematic design phase and are developing designs for both buildings that will have a common thread to identify them as part of the Oxford community,” Wiley commented, via email.

The plan at this time is for the Finance and Community Development departments to occupy the first floor and the Service Department and Administrative Offices will take over the second floor of the renovated library, according to Elliott.

According to Wiley, the new City Hall space will incorporate features from the old library, which relocated to a brand new building at 441 S. Locust St. in the fall of 2015. The exposed wood beams, old skylights, and new windows will allow natural light into the office spaces within the building.

“We’re working to improve the quality of the interior space of the new administration building to establish it as a welcome place for the residents of Oxford,” Wiley said.

The police force is also looking forward to the renovation of the Municipal Building. Jones said he is hoping for a fitness room, locker room, and training room as key features of the new police department offices.

“Many updates are planned for the new police building,” Wiley said, “including new technology and mechanical systems, the addition of an elevator and new finishes throughout.”

Looking ahead
After the move next year, the administration and police force will be separated by three blocks instead of one floor, but both entities will still be centrally located, according to Elliott.

“I think the idea of having the city staff over there by the Community Arts Center is good because we’ll have city staff on either end of town. Police on east, administration on the west,” Rousmaniere said.

Elliott hopes the move will result in top quality service. The public will be invited to an open house to tour the new facilities once they’re completed.

“I think simply gaining more space is going to be huge, but the improvements will improve morale, make us more effective and increase efficiency,” Jones said.

Photo: Oxford's current Municipal Building, located on 101 E. High St., has housed both the city administration and the police department since its opening in 1938. -- Photo by Mariel Padilla