Chelsea council approves purchase of new building for library
Chelsea Public Library is on its way to tripling its space. During its March 7 meeting, the Chelsea City Council approved a resolution allowing Mayor Tony Picklesimer to contract with Renasant Bank for the purchase of the bank’s old building on U.S. 280.
The city is set to purchase the building for $895,000, a few hundred thousand less than the price it was put on the market for — $1.3 million.
Picklesimer first looked at the building in the summer of 2016, but did not start discussing the topic with the council until the start of December 2016. At first, Picklesimer said he thought the price tag would make the purchase impossible, but negotiations and a “community spirit” from Renasant Bank helped.
“I can’t stress enough that Mike Ross, with Renasant Bank, he really put his community hat on,” Picklesimer said.
The old Renasant Bank building was the location of Chelsea’s first city hall as well as it’s first library, “so we’re going home,” said Library Director Dana Polk. While the city’s library has around 1,500-1,600 square feet at this time, the new building will nearly triple that to 5,100 square feet. And Polk already has a vision for a lot of that space.
“The downstairs already has some rooms that I don’t think we’re going to have to touch, and it’s going to give us a computer room that’s not in the hallway,” she said. “It’s also going to give us a dedicated study space. …I don’t know how big the vault is, but I’d love to have that be the young adult space.”
The building’s visibility is also ideal. Polk said it is the “perfect spot. … Nobody’s going to be able to say, ‘I didn’t know Chelsea had a library.’”
The small meeting room upstairs provides an added asset of a dedicated meeting room, she said, and the possibility of closing in the current drive through, which would add on around 1,200 additional square feet.
“My excitement is that not this summer, but next summer, we’ll be able to hold our summer reading programs in the library, and other programming too, eventually,” Polk said.
At this time, there is no set construction timeline. Picklesimer said 90-120 days is a “soft guess” at how long construction will take once it is started. Prior to the work starting, however, there will be meetings to discuss the construction process.
In making a decision to purchase the building, Picklesimer said he contemplated the monthly and annual cost of the building and its renovations for the city. In a big way, he said, the building is an investment for Chelsea.
“The purchase of this building is fundamentally different than any other building or property that we’ve purchased in Chelsea,” Picklesimer said. City Hall will always be city hall, the Chelsea Community Center will remain the community center. The library’s new home, however, might not always be the library. “Some day, 10, 12, 15 years from now, some mayor and council will decide to build a permanent library here on our campus. When that happens, this building that we have purchased tonight will be a very valuable, marketable asset for the city of Chelsea. And it’s a great investment for the city of Chelsea.”
That investment also pays off in regard to Chelsea’s young citizens and the resources a larger library can provide to them, he said.
“It’s also a great investment for our schools and for our young people in the city,” Picklesimer said. “I want our kids to have a place to go to enjoy and learn to use the latest in technology, and to have room to do it in. I also want our library to be a place our citizens are proud of, and I think that building just fits the bill.”
For families coming to look at homes in Chelsea, Picklesimer added that he hopes the prominence of the library, in the city’s commercial district, will make a statement.
“I think it’ll make a statement that education is important to us,” he said. “It’s a building we can all be proud of.”
Also during the council meeting:
- During pre-council, council member Tiffany Bittner presented the rest of the council with preliminary designs for signage at the Chelsea Sports Complex.
- During pre-council, council member Scott Weygand presented the council with a possible design for logos that will go on all city vehicles that are not already marked. This will mainly be for maintenance or other official vehicles, not including fire trucks or other already marked vehicles.
- During pre-council, Picklesimer asked members of the city council if anyone would be interested in acting as a liaison between the city and the Chelsea Historical Society.
- The “Harmony Hornets,” Chelsea Park Elementary School’s show choir, performed a medley of songs.
- Girl Scout Troop No. 3952 led the Pledge of Allegiance.
- Chelsea Middle School Principal Andrew Gunn gave an update on the school, during which he noted that they have just over 1,000 students and are expecting their largest enrollment numbers for the 10th year in a row in the 2017-18 school year. He also thanked the mayor and council for its support of the school.
- The council approved an ordinance to annex a 1.6 acre property on Highway 109 into the city.
- The council approved a resolution for a contract with Kelly Contracting and Paving. The paving company will put safety asphalt and patchwork in the Greenbriar Place subdivision.
- Council member Casey Morris announced the city will host a community clean up day on Saturday, May 6.