Newspaper Clipping - Newspaper Clipping Scan - Eagan is weighing future of Town Hall - 4/11/2014Mayor Mike Maguire called
the fire "one of those unexpected
challenges" in his recent State of
the City address and praised the
fast response by fire and police
departments, which saved the
historic building from being
a total loss. The fire remains
under investigation.
The structure, which sits
across the street from Eagan's
municipal campus, was shrink-
wrapped in plastic to maintain
surviving portions during the
winter while the city considered
options for preserving it.
Earlier this year, the city
began seeking proposals from
architects on the cost and time-
line. The suggested options
include constructing a stand-
alone building on the city's
campus, reconstructing it as
an addition to the existing City
Hall or installing elements of it
in the vacant fire administration
building in partnership with
other area arts, culture or his-
tory groups.
The city will receive about
$86,000 in insurance from the
League of Minnesota Cities after
paying a $25,000 deductible. The
city already has determined it
would cost about $131,000 to
rebuild the hall on its current
site using new materials. The
council rejected the idea of using
vintage materials, because that
would cost two to three times
more. However, the city has
asked architects to find ways to
use salvaged materials.
Garrison said the city is seek-
ing "concept ideas, not finished
designs." The process doesn't
preclude the council from
choosing some other option, he
said. "This is simply gathering
more and better information so
[the council] can begin to iden-
tify preferred ... steps going for-
ward," he said.
IL 11, 2014 STAR TRIBUNE • METRO • B3
on the beat
Star Tribune metro reporters
open up their notebooks
Eqgan is
weighing
future of
Town Hall
SUSAN FEYDER
DAKOTA COUNTY
Officials in Eagan
may soon chart the
.. future of the city's
century -old Town
Hall, which was
heavily damaged last fall by an
arson fire.
The building, which con-
tained displays and artifacts,
was a popular destination for
school and scout groups as well
as residents interested in learn-
ing more about Eagan's history,
said Tom Garrison, the city's
communications director. Some
items managed to be saved and
have been cleaned up and stored
in a vacant fire administration
building. he said.