MARINETTE — The Marinette Common Council unanimously passed a proposal from Ayers Associates for the National Guard Armory property that would study the cost of relocating the police station and possibly city hall.
“We’d like to see what the fit for the police department is, and then as some of that design work can proceed, we would potentially then wonder if there could be an addition to potentially put the city hall there,” Genisot said.
Genisot said the plans for putting city hall at the Armory aren’t defined, but right now, it’s the only building the city controls.
Alderperson Rick Polzin said he’d like to see the city hall included in any project. He said the city needs to figure out how much space it needs and how much it would cost.
“That gives us information on how much it would cost us vs. UW center and stuff like that,” Polzin said.
The University of Wisconsin — Green Bay, Marinette Campus buildings have been discussed at the county and city level, but the county still owns the property. The city has voted that it may be interested in the administration and library buildings.
Alderperson Doug Oitzinger said the city should get bids from more than one engineering firm if they’re expanding the scope of the work. The original proposal only included the police station, not the city hall.
“We’re not in a rush,” Oitzinger said.
He said the city should get an estimate that includes everything it wants. He also discussed exploring whether the municipal court would be better in the Armory building. He mentioned considering a generator for backup power and whether the city needed a radio tower.
He was concerned about the parking area next to the ditch being prone to flooding. He said the project estimate should include how to protect that property.
Mayor Genisot said the proposal was not for design but simply for space analysis and to determine whether the building would be able to accommodate the police station and possibly city hall.
“Certainly, all these things that you’re mentioning will be part of that work,” Genisot said.
Genisot said there was more down the pipeline — this study was the first step in determining what services would make sense in the building.
“This would start that process, but even with that work, it’s not going to be weeks. It’s going to be months,” Genisot said.
City council president and alderperson Dorothy Kowalski questioned how everything would fit in the Armory building.
The mayor said the building would include an addition, either in the form of an attached or separate building.
He said he’s not looking to exclude the council from the process, as they would have valuable input. The consultant for Ayers would present plans to the council, but they would first need to talk to the police chief and administration about department needs.
“I would hope the council would get input before we get to the full design phase,” Genisot said.
Alderperson Ken Keller said the analysis will be essential to start.
“Let’s take the first step and go from there,” Keller said.
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