Plans for former bank branch outlined by city manager

A bank building purchased by the city of Greensboro intended for a new city hall has sat vacant for a number of years at 201 South Main St.

The purchase, made in 2018, came from earlier discussions and planning from a city comprehensive plan as far back as 2002.

It was determined then that the current city hall facility was soon outgrowing its capacity for employees, meeting rooms, storage space and court chambers.

A steering committee reinforced the need for a new city hall, citing earlier concerns and renewed interest in considerable storage place. At that time, it was estimated that a new building of 10,000 square feet could meet those needs.

In 2007, the city’s five-year plan also included a recommendation related to city hall, which suggested a plan for expansion of the current structure or construction of a new city hall located downtown.

In 2012, an update to the five-year plan explored the idea of relocating City Hall to the historic Greensboro Depot. However, the plan was partially dependent on participation from private developers and did not materialize.

In 2018, the old BB&T bank building was ultimately purchased by the city for the new city hall for $385,000. It was shortly deeded in a sale to the Georgia Municipal Association (GMA) and refinanced through their “Bricks and Mortar” program for roughly $1.4 million dollars.

This was to account for the significant refurbishment of the facility. Installment payments against the loan to date have totaled roughly $123,704, and the building remains vacant.

According to City Manager Larry Postell, the quarterly $30,926 payments are funded by city SPLOST funds.

Architectural drawings and concepts were presented to the city in 2019, and in March 2020 the COVID pandemic virtually put a stop to all city-funded initiatives.

As the nation started to recover from the pandemic, economic realities in the construction industries were apparent, including a nationwide shortage of construction materials.

According to Postell, this prevented the city from moving ahead with securing most renovation bids.

During the initial stages of the pandemic, contractors bid less just to stay in business. According to Associated General Contractors, bid prices and input costs increased by 0.5% and 12.8% respectively since the onset on the pandemic.

“As most of the nation experienced, there was a sharp rise in construction material costs and unforeseen cost,” he said. “This contributed to supply chain issues and overall inflation concerns.”

Postell asserts the city’s intention has and is to purchase and renovate the facility as a new city hall, despite shortfalls in earlier expected renovation costs which could easily overrun its current $1.4 million budget.

The financial impacts of the pandemic continue as the economy catches up, and the city expects to continue to move ahead with renovation with a new city administration in place.

Recently, city bids were received for a new roof of $55-58,000 to be put on this spring. Despite its slow start, Postell confirmed that the building will transform from what many residents have seen as an eyesore entering the city to one that will be a new, repurposed building.