PHOTO CAPTION:

Key West City officials, including all city commissioners and City Manager Jim Scholl, took part in the ceremonial groundbreaking at the site of the new City Hall on White Street.

 

City Hall groundbreaking ceremony puts past disagreements to rest

BY PRU SOWER

KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER

 

Standing in front of empty window frames, peeling paint and exposed wood studs, it may have been a bit difficult to imagine that one year from now the former Glynn Archer Elementary School in Key West will reopen for business as the Josephine Parker City Hall.

 

But none of the officials who attended the official ground breaking on Feb. 24 had any doubt it will happen. After a political battle that pitted city commissioners against commissioners, the city commission against the school board and complaints from a not insignificant number of residents who didn’t want to move City Hall out of its former home on Angela Street, the $15 million project officially began construction on Feb. 9.

 

Tuesday’s ground breaking was largely ceremonial but offered an opportunity for several of the speakers to praise Mayor Craig Cates for taking the lead in hammering out a deal that ultimately won the unanimous approval of both his city commission and the Monroe County School Board, which turned the building over to the city. Commissioner Teri Johnston pointed out that she was originally against moving City Hall into the former elementary school. But she thanked Cates for his “relentless, relentless pursuit of this building” and joked that she learned how to count to four when it became clear that the proposal had a four-vote majority on her commission.

Commissioner Tony Yaniz also referred to the political debate over the project.

 

“A lot of times we disagree out there,” he said. “Today as a city we stand up to recognize our heritage. The intersection of White and United [streets] is the intersection of our past and future.”

 

“This is a fabulous occasion,” said Commissioner Jimmy Weekley. “The beginning of a new chapter for this building and the beginning of a new chapter for the city.”

 

Mayor Cates was visibly moved at the ceremony, which culminated with 16 city officials using gold-painted shovels to throw sand brought in for the occasion into the air. He said that there are few things more important to him than preserving the island’s history. Rehabilitating the almost 92-year-old building and consolidating Key West City government into one location, bringing staff together to create more efficiencies, were his goals, he said.

 

“It’s a great day for the city of Key West. This historic building will be the central hub of your government, in the middle of town, accessible to all,” Cates said. “This is such a special day.”

 

Bert Bender, the project architect who took some hits from commissioners and taxpayers when construction bids came in $1.8 million over his estimate, said it took “courage” for the school district and city and county officials to come to an agreement to reuse the building.

 

“It represents the history of Key West, the history of many of us,” Bender said, referring to the hundreds of local children who attended Glynn Archer Elementary School.

 

Commissioner Mark Rossi, who was a supporter of the original project, nonetheless warned Bender, City Manager Jim Scholl and contractor Burke Construction to take pains to ensure that the renovation is done on time and on budget.
“That’s the most important thing here,” he said.

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