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345 SE 5th, Madras, OR 97741 | 541.475.2275
City of Madras and USDA Rural Development officials broke ground at the future site of the Madras City Hall-Police Station on Friday. Taking part in the ceremony were, from left, City Administrator Gus Burril, councilors Tom Brown, Royce Embanks, Jon Young, Jennifer Flowers and Mayor Melanie Widmer, Police Chief Tom Adams, USDA Under Secretary for Rural Development Dallas Tonsager, Oregon Rural Development Director Vickie Walker, and former mayor Rick Allen.
Construction for the new Madras City Hall-Police Station could get under way as early as next week, weather permitting, following last week's groundbreaking.
"It was a long time coming, and involved lots of different people -- many mayors, city councilors and city staff, as well as the community," said Mayor Melanie Widmer.
The 14,800-square-foot building, designed by Steele Associates Architects, is expected to cost about $5 million. CS Construction was the winning bidder at $4,041,263.
A lobby will divide the 7,060-square-foot city hall offices and council chamber on the west side of the building from the 5,910-square-foot police station on the east side.
The current building, which consists of three small, cobbled together buildings, has a total of about 7,000 square feet. Because the building is located in a floodway and considered seismically unsafe, the Federal Emergency Management Agency is providing $350,000 to demolish it.
During the groundbreaking ceremony, Widmer also introduced special guests from U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development -- Under Secretary Dallas Tonsager, of Washington, D.C., and State Director Vickie Walker, of Eugene.
Rural Development is backing a $2.2 million low-interest loan for the project, which will be combined with a $1.7 million low-interest revenue bond, the $350,000 FEMA grant, and $722,215 set aside by the city.
"We're having a preconstruction meeting today," Burril said on Tuesday. "We'll go over the schedule with the contractor, and the USDA's requirements for delivery of the project."
"I'm excited to get the project under way," said Burril.
Widmer agreed that it's a great time for the city. "It almost doesn't feel real, it's so exciting," Widmer said Tuesday. "It will be exciting to actually see the heavy equipment out there."
