Eight months after a fire destroyed the city hall in Ellsworth, the city is set to rebuild.
A call for bids was announced last week and a bid opening date is set for Sept. 5 at 2 p.m.
City council members will meet in special session tonight (Aug. 29) to discuss the plans and kick off a fundraising campaign to build a recreation center next to the new city hall.
The call for bids consists of two parts — the bid for a wooden-frame city hall replacement building with an additional bid for an optional steel-frame community recreation center.
Both structures are to be built on the former city hall site on the corner of South Broadway Street and Fourth Avenue next to the city’s water tower.
A new 48-by-70-foot city shop is planned next to the city’s existing fire station on city-owned property.
City officials worked with Jeff Nelson of Falls Architecture Studio in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, who drew up the building plans.
The city hall consists of a 3,583-square-foot wood-framed structure located north of the water tower.
“The water tower splits the property into a U-shape,” he said.
Prior to the January fire, the area north of the water tower was green space.
Entrance into the city clerk’s office is again planned from South Broadway Street, the main thoroughfare for the city of about 450 people.
Inside the one-floor city hall structure will be the city clerk’s office, council chambers, restrooms, mechanical room and storage.
A corridor runs the length of the building and separates the city hall portion of the building with a proposed 1,689-square foot community room and kitchen.
Entrance to the community room is also proposed from South Broadway Street.
The recreation center is a 60-by-125-foot pre-engineered structure attached to the city hall building’s southeast corner.
The two buildings are separated by a proposed firewall.
Access into the recreation center would also be from South Broadway Avenue.
The recreation center will feature a large multi-purpose room with a basketball court and a walking track. The center will also have restrooms and a fitness area. A mezzanine will contain the mechanical room and a small area for spectator seating overlooking the basketball court and walking track.
City hall consumed by fire
Seven fire departments responded to a fire at Ellsworth City Hall the morning of Jan. 15.
Cause of the fire was undetermined in the 115-year-old stone building, according to the state fire marshal’s office.
Within days after the fire, a temporary city office was set up and is still operating out of the Zion Presbyterian Church, a block south of the former city hall location on Broadway Street.
By February, council members began exploring options to rebuild. Councilors visited city halls in Wilmont, Brewster and Heron Lake in Minnesota and Lester, Iowa.
A community meeting was conducted in March, where information was shared between the city council and its residents.
Tonight’s informational meeting begins at 7:30 p.m. at Ellsworth Public Schools.
The agenda includes a presentation of the new city hall/recreation center plans and the city shop. Financing will be discussed along with the outlining of a community fundraising drive.