MUKILTEO – The Mukilteo City Council has targeted the end of January as a decision point on where to build a new city hall.
The council agreed Monday to conduct a public hearing Jan. 31 on the issue and possibly decide the same night.
“This is something that has gone on and on and on, and we need to make a decision,” Councilwoman Cathy Reese said.
Since the early 1990s, the city has leased a former industrial park at 4480 Chennault Beach Road for its city offices. The lease, under which the city pays about $160,000 per year, expires in 2007, and council members expressed a desire to be in a new building by then.
The plan on the books involves building a city hall and community center on the site occupied by the Rosehill Community Center at 304 Lincoln Ave. The site was selected in 1997, and plans were drawn in 2001 for the $12.2 million project.
Earlier this year the council agreed to consider a site next to the city’s police station at 10500 47th Place W. That site, owned by the state, contains a wetland. The city will have to finish making changes to its law that governs construction near wetlands before it is known whether a city hall could be built there, officials said.
A public hearing on the wetland ordinance had been scheduled for Feb. 7 but will be moved to Jan. 24 to expedite the city hall process, council members agreed.
Most residents who spoke Monday called for preserving the Rosehill center and building city hall elsewhere.
Reporter Bill Sheets: 425-339-3439 or sheets@heraldnet.com.
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