Council members Day, Ussery to discuss postponing demolition of courthouse at Tues. June 16 meeting

By Brandi Hart
McKinneyUpdate.com editor
Created at 9:35 p.m. on June 14, 2009

The demolition of the former Collin County Courthouse at 210 S. McDonald St. may be put on hold as two McKinney City Council members are going to ask the city staff to look at the cost estimates associated with demolishing the building and constructing a new building it its place.

Council member for District 1 Don Day and Council member for District 3 Travis Ussery will discuss the issue at the June 16 council workshop meeting. It will begin at 3 p.m. at the council chambers at City Hall, 222 N. Tennessee St. The council meeting, where the council members will actually vote on items, will be held at 5:30 p.m. on June 16, immediately following the workshop meeting.

Day plans to also ask for a complete review of the cost estimates that were presented to the council by city staff about the cost to demolish the building and build a new one in its place. The city is planning to build a 45,000 square foot new government center where the courthouse and Annex A building, which used to house the former Collin County Jail, are located on McDonald Street, which is also State Highway 5.

Day said on June 14 that the city needs to put the demolition of the former courthouse on hold until Collin County resolves its issue with the Texas Historical Commission. Representatives from the Commission notified county officials that the county did not notify the THC when county officials sold the courthouse to the city several years ago. He wants the city to hire in house construction management personnel who has experience in actually constructing new buildings and renovating old buildings, Day said. He believes the estimated project cost to build a new government center are too high.

"I think we're paying too much money. I have real questions about the numbers and there are issues there. The numbers are overstated, in some cases and I would like to see the city get better construction management than they've had in the past," Day said.

Day is a downtown developer who has renovated many buildings on the square and in downtown. He recently expanded the Grand Hotel on Louisiana Street and demolished a former office building and built the hotel expansion from the ground up. The cost per square foot to build the hotel expansion, which was completed in mid-April of this year, is half of the projected cost per square foot to build the government center, according to the cost estimates that were presented to the council months ago by independent consultants, Day said.

"When I compare the city's numbers on what it will cost to build a government center the city's numbers are showing $375 per square foot to build a 45,000 square foot facility. The hard construction costs to build the Grand Hotel expansion was $113 per square foot, and that is without the cost of land acquisition and furniture," Day said.

He went on to explain that the city's numbers for new construction are always going to be higher than Day's construction costs because Day is a property owner and contractor, so he doesn't charge himself an owner fee, he said. Day also doesn't require himself to be bonded, but the city does, which is an extra cost, Day said.

A quorum of council members has previously voted to demolish the courthouse and Annex A and build a new government or municipal center that will hold the city's Development Services Department, which houses more than 200 people at 221 N. Tennessee St.

Former McKinney City Manager Larry Robinson has also asked the council several months ago to use the Development Services building at 221 N. Tennessee St. for non-profit and faith based groups to office out of after the Development Services staff moves out of the building into their new home at the government center. Robinson is the Executive Director of the 3E group, which deals with local non-profit, faith based groups.

The council will also discuss plans for a new aquatic and recreational facility to be built west of US 75, which will be the city's first recreational facility to be built west of US 75.

The McKinney Parks, Recreation and Open Space Department recently held a public input meeting about what residents want in a recreation facility to be built west of US 75, and for an aquatic facility. The aquatic facility could be a natatorium, an indoor pool, or a combination of an indoor and outdoor pool, said Lemuel Randolph, Director of the Parks, Recreation and Open Space Department.

About 40 people, mostly comprised of members of swim teams from McKinney High School, McKinney North HS and McKinney Boyd HS, attended the meeting and told the city staff members that they wanted a pool with swim lanes, preferably a natatorium, Randolph said.

The council will also meet in a close, executive session to discuss the pending law suit that the McKinney Economic Development Corporation has filed against McKinney Shores Hotel Partners, and the counter suit that MSHP filed against the MEDC, the city, the McKinney Community Development Corp., and former council members Bill Cox and Thad Helsley, which was first reported on McKinneyUpdate.com. For more information about the counter suit, click here.

For more information about the meeting, call the city at 972-547-7500.

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