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Belleair Beach Municipal Center on track
By DOUG WATKINS
Article published on Thursday, Dec. 1, 2005 |
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![[Image]](/content_images/120105_bee-02-a.jpg) |
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| Photo courtesy of CITY OF BELLEAIR BEACH |
| The architectural rendering depicts the Southeast perspective of the Belleair Beach Municipal Center, with a window view of the Intracoastal Waterway. |
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![[Image]](/content_images/120105_bee-02-b.jpg) |
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| Photo courtesy of CITY OF BELLEAIR BEACH |
| The Northwest perspective of the Belleair Beach Municipal Center is shown. |
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BELLEAIR BEACH – After three years of preliminary planning, the City Council Monday night saw what the city’s new Municipal Center will look like when it is completed in mid 2007.
Architect design firm Harvard Jolly presented an updated site plan, floor plan and drawings of the center at a special council meeting on Nov. 28. The new center includes city offices, lobby and multi-use auditorium and council chambers.
The center will be built on city property fronting the Belleair Beach Causeway. The current City Hall will be demolished to make way for the new complex. Estimated cost of the building is $2.28 million.
The contemporary design features a council chambers glass wall overlooking the Intracoastal Waterway. The updates, requested by the council last June, include increasing the center’s floor space from 10,000 square feet to 12,000 square feet. The building’s floor elevation was increased to 12 feet, two feet above FEMA requirements, and the building now is designed to withstand 140 mph winds.
The updates necessitated changes in design.
“For example,” said Harvard Jolly’s Ward Friszolowski, “the increase in floor elevation by 2 feet means lengthening the two entrance ramps by 12 feet to meet code requirements.”
“If we have a storm surge greater than 12 feet and winds higher than 140 miles per hour, we’ll all be in real trouble,” said Council member Lynn Rives as he gave his nod of approval to the design changes.
The council approved the updated design development phase of the project, clearing the way for the design firm to move into the construction documents phase, a process that is scheduled to be completed by March 2006. Contractor bidding will follow with a tentative construction startup date of April 2006.
City Attorney Paul Marino recommended that a special committee selected by the council be responsible for contractor bidding.
“I have found that when the architect handles the bids, it opens the door for post-construction lawsuits where the architect blames the contractor for construction problems and vice versa,” he said.
Council member Jeff Coulson cast the only nay vote.
“I think we should give the public an opportunity to voice its opinion on the design before we go to the next phase,” he said.
The council opted to make Harvard Jolly’s presentation available on the city’s cable television channel as well as making printed copies of the architect’s drawings available at City Hall.
In other business, the council gave thumbs up to increasing homestead exemptions for property owners 65 years and older with an annual household income that does not exceed $20,000. The additional homestead exemption is $25,000. The ordinance passed unanimously.
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Article published on Thursday, Dec. 1, 2005
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