Spencer Board of Aldermen approved the purchase of property next to the old city hall during Thursday night’s Aldermen meeting.
Mayor Alisa Farmer said the property is 0.15 acres between the old city hall and the Department of Human Resources Office. Farmer said the old storehouse and the rest of the property are on the market and may have already been sold. Farmer said though the portion of property is small it is crucial for the old town hall.
“The thing about it is we have limited parking there,” Farmer said. “And if the new owners, you know, the Hitchcock family has always been really receptive of us parking with all of our planning meetings and whatnot that goes on there and the new owner might not be and we have nowhere else to go but the street if we have to park.”
Aldermen David Chandler said he was for purchasing the portion of the property as it is one of the few things the city can buy that is next to the old city hall. Chandler also said $2,000 is a fairly low price.
“Sometimes citizens will hold you hostage if they know you have to have it,” Chandler said. “They were very nice about the price that they gave us.”
Farmer said the city does not have any immediate plans for the portion of the property. However, Chandler said he does believe something will need to be done to create more parking.
“It probably will be eventually if they sell that other part that we have been parking on,” Chandler said. “Well then we will have to actually gravel it or pave or do whatever we need to do because we do hold meetings there and that is where our codes department is at.”
Chandler said the city may reach out to the new owner if the property is purchased about parking on the property depending on what the new owner plans to do with the building. Chandler said if the new owner has specific plans the city would likely try to disrupt those plans.
In other business, the board approved street closures for the Van Buren Mountain Homecoming celebration that will be happening in July. The street closures will be the same as last year.
The board approved adopting the International Energy Conservation Code 2018 edition on the second and final reading.
