The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming

Tough decisions ahead for town center

Ben Levenger of Down Town Redevelopment Services, the company hired to conduct a feasibility study of the Moorcroft Town Center (MTC), reported his findings thus far to the Moorcroft Town Council after the adjournment of a special meeting on Monday evening.

Structure

Levenger shared primarily bad news and a difficult choice with the quorum in attendance. "The good news is it's built like a bomb shelter so, structurally, it looks to be in okay condition. However, basically, every fit and fixture in the building has to be changed."

The certified planner gave numbers and facts that silenced the council: "Based on the square footage, for a loan, you're going to be well over $2 million to renovate that building; you're probably more in the neighborhood of $3-4 million, maybe more depending on how much it costs to clean up the coal boiler. That could be a half million [$500,000] itself."

"Nothing's insurmountable," Levenger continued, "but the dollar figures are high. By the numbers, you're still going to have $400,000 in the roof alone, not to mention who knows how much flooring. Overall, the building is in good condition on the southern half and can be salvaged. There are no more band aids for that building. It either needs a full rehab or it needs to disappear."

He went on in more detail, every bathroom needs updated to follow ADA standards; floors need repaired and retiled; both electrical and plumbing systems have to be replaced to code; and the roof must be replaced.

"If you're going to make it a place people are going to want to rent, you're going to have to go in and actually clean it up," he said.

Damage

This "quick review", Levenger reminded the council, does not take into account the anticipated structural damage to the roof area from years of water infiltration: "It's not just a hole in the roof. The trusses or whatever is holding up the roof will have damage."

The roof has been leaking for more than a decade, according to Councilman Dale Petersen, who was the last principal to work in the former elementary school building.

Levenger told his audience that at least three of the rooms that have been impacted severely by the last rain have carpets that "are still wet and smells very mildew-y so my guess is that you're growing something in there." He said that one of the recommendations at the end of the study will be testing for growth in the ceiling area.

Another test recommended by the planner is for asbestos, "You have asbestos on the north side around almost every window. [The cost of mitigation] could be next to nothing and they could paint over it with a special kind of paint, sealing it and you're good or it has to be totally removed."

The asbestos in the ceiling area is another story, according to Levenger, "Your ceiling is being disturbed because of the weather." With this becoming an actual problem, "You're kind of between a rock and a hard place with that."

However, he suggested, the southern half of the building could be preserved and maintained. "My guess is just to do that south side of the building, you're still looking at $1-$1.5 million to get everything going," he said.

He pointed out that if the town decides to retain the southern part of the building after the completion of the report, "I would refocus the efforts of roof repairs on the scope you're going to save." Levenger has created a 3D model that can be used to move walls, etc and see by scaled square footage how the space saved can be remodeled.

The planner was plain spoken as he outlined the choice the town will have to make about the future of the MTC, asking the governing body how much do they want to continue to invest in this enterprise.

While the state does not offer many if any grants to rehabilitate these old buildings anymore, they do offer help to tear them down, said Levenger, and, "You'd be likely to get some grants if you tear it down."

Regarding the possibility of tearing everything down, the mayor opined, "I think it would cost us $1 million to tear it down, or more."

Levenger agreed, "But, if you're looking at $4 million to renovate, $1 million is still a calculation that is much easier to swallow than $4 million. The question is, are you ready to sink $1 million plus into the building."

After a few moments of silence, Councilman Dale Petersen admitted, "It's hard to hear, because that building has been kind of the rock of the community for many years, the one building, since 1921."

Claar suggested the possibility of the building being on a historical registry within the state, however, Levenger, who had checked both state and national registries, told the body that he had not found it currently recorded on either.

"I think it's a great building," Levenger shared his admiration of this old building, "But it's too big for this community and the cost is too high because you're never going to get your money back, you're never going to break even. You can't lose $40-$50,000 every year plus capital improvement costs."

The town currently subsidizes the MTC to the tune of well over $40,000 each year.