Politics & Government
Library-City Hall Construction Likely Delayed To Next Year
Design changes made earlier this summer will mean a delay in construction to a new city hall-library building at Drexel Town Square.
Groundbreaking for a new city hall-library building at the Drexel Town Square development may not happen as soon as planned.
City Administrator Gerald Peterson said design changes approved earlier this summer will likely move the construction start date into 2014. The city had planned on work to begin this fall.
In June, the Oak Creek Common Council voted to add underground parking to the facility, rather than build a detached garage to the east. Among other factors, aldermen said doing so would open up space for more development opportunities at Drexel Town Square.
Top city officials also favored the change, but the move will delay construction as architects make adjustments to the building's design, Peterson said. The city also increased its spending on the building by about $2 million as a result of the change.
The 87,000-square-foot city hall-library building will be constructed on the south end of the 85-acre Drexel Town Square redevelopment site, at the corner of Drexel and Howell avenues.
Drexel Town Square is planned as a "new downtown" for Oak Creek that will include a mix of shops, apartments, restaurants and a Meijer store.
The Common Council approved a financing plan for the project that should allow work on infrastructure—streets, lights, water and sewer, grading—to begin by the end of the year.
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