Residents and leaders from Manzanita and across north Tillamook County gathered on April 6, at Underhill Plaza to break ground on a new city hall and police station facility.
The long-awaited facility is expected to take 14 months to complete and will be built by local contractors, Cove Built LLC.
“We’ve had fits and starts but finally we’re here,” said Council President Linda Kozlowski, “and it really is thanks to our wonderful city manager and staff, it’s thanks to our great team and it’s thanks to a very brave and strong city council who said, ‘by god, we’re going to get this thing done.’”
The ceremony took place on a rainy Saturday morning but more than 150 residents braved the inclement weather to witness the groundbreaking.
For almost 30 years, successive city governments and administrations have discussed building a new city hall, but time and again efforts were stymied for various reasons. After the failure of a ballot question asking voters to approve a tax increase to fund a new facility in 2019, the council began exploring different options.
Eventually, the Underhill Plaza site was identified and a design was developed that will house both the police station and city hall in a facility with a guaranteed maximum price of $4.6 million. The city is financing the project through a loan from Business Oregon’s Special Public Works Fund and will pay back the borrowed money over the course of ten years.
At the groundbreaking ceremony, Mayor Kathryn Stock spoke first and thanked current and former city councilors for their support of the project. She also gave special thanks to ex-City Manager Jerry Taylor, who was instrumental in early efforts at starting the project, and the community as a whole.
“A sincere thank you, we are all part of this community together,” Stock said, “if I could, those of you who know me you know I might actually try but I won’t try to introduce every person that’s here.”
City Manager Leila Aman followed Stock and thanked the construction team and the staff at city hall, whose support she said had been and would continue to be critical to the project’s success. Aman noted the special contributions by Public Works Director Dan Weitzel and voiced her appreciation for the turnout at the event.
“I’m so grateful and surprised and moved and also unsurprised to see so many people out here today,” Aman said, “so thanks for taking your time on your Saturday when it’s pouring rain.”
Architect Chris Keane, Project Manager Jesse Steiger and Cove Built LLC Owner Jason Stegner also spoke, with Stegner highlighting the number of local subcontractors that would be employed on the project.
Finally, Kozlowski took the stage and thanked the project team and city council for its hard work before the council officially broke ground on the project.
“We would not be here today without all of you,” Kozlowski said, “it is your support, your energy, your feedback, your caring, your working with us to get what I think will be an extraordinary city hall. So, with that and with our great thanks, let’s dig it.”
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