SILER CITY — Siler City’s $500,000 town hall renovation project is nearing a start.
The footprint of the building — located at and first built and dedicated in the early 1940s — will not change. In fact, several spaces in the town hall will only have “cosmetic” changes, such as painting and new carpet, because of the limitations of the building’s original construction. The biggest changes will be additional offices, improvements to handicap accessibility, and new energy efficient windows.
Hobbs Architects of Pittsboro is managing the project, which is currently in the surveying stage with the construction bidding process likely to begin within a month.
Among the changes:
• The bottom floor, which houses the town’s parks and recreation department and the license plate agency, will have separate entrances. There will also be a handicap accessible bathroom installed. The renovation will also allow for an additional office for parks and recreation staff.
• On the main floor, the town manager and clerk’s offices will be completely reconfigured with a conference room to be located where the current manager’s office is. The finance office, where the public pays its utility bills, will see mostly cosmetic changes. Other offices in the main hallway will also be reconfigured with a large conference room which can be separated with partitions to create office space when needed, “adding versatility,” according to Town Manager Roy Lynch.
• The rear entrance will also move, which will allow a ramp entrance rather than the current stairs so that the building is handicap accessible. The main floor bathrooms will also be renovated to be handicap accessible. Many of the office doors will be replaced with glass doors “to be more inviting and visitor friendly,” according to Lynch. Heat and air conditioning will also be installed in all the hallways, which the building currently does not have.
• The top floor which houses the courtroom will see the least amount of significant changes. The planning office and courtroom will receive fresh coats of paint and carpeting, and the planning office will have a glass door installed. The “ways the walls are structured” make major changes impossible, according to Lynch. The human resources office and top floor conference room will be reconfigured to add office space. The two small bathrooms will converted into a single, unisex, handicap accessible restroom.
• The elevators will also have to be upgraded, according to Lynch, and the town hall’s camera security system will be improved. The grounds in front of the town hall will also see landscaping improvements. The goal was to change or modify what the town could within the constraints of the concrete and stone walls. The new windows, which alone will cost about $91,000, will be a huge improvement to the building since many of the windows allowed air in and, in some cases, rain, according to Lynch.
Lynch believes the construction will begin within the next few months and continue for four to six months until complete. The town hall will remain open during the renovation, but Lynch notes that visitors may encounter “some inconvenience” during the process. Lynch hopes that the project will not only make town operations more efficient, but make the entire building more visitor friendly and accessible.
Casey Mann can be reached at CaseyMann@Chathamnr.com.