Kelly Kenoyer
Sweet Home’s old City Hall will be used as a training facility for Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District firefighters following a 6-1 vote City Council vote on Oct. 13.
Mayor Greg Mahler and Councilors Susan Coleman, Diane Gerson, Lisa Gourley and Dave Trask attended the meeting in person, with Councilors James Goble and Cortney Nash attending remotely. Gourley was the only dissenting vote.
The city purchased the former U.S. Forest Service headquarters at 3225 Main St. and moved into it last year, leaving the old city hall building vacant and unused. The future of old City Hall, located at the corner of 12th Avenue and Kalmia Street, has come up frequently during council meetings in the interim, but the city hasn’t come up with any long-term plans.
The councilors voted in favor of an intergovernmental agreement with the fire district to allow use of the building as a training ground, with workout equipment in the basement. It would also share use of the building with a local backpacking group.
Deputy Fire Chief Doug Emmert told councilors that “the main way we’d be using that building for is training. We don’t have many opportunities with a two-story building with a basement and an elevator.”
He added that the fire district wouldn’t burn the building or cause any smoke damage.
“We expect very little damage to the building, and any damage we plan to fix,” he said.
Trask, a longtime volunteer firefighter, said the firefighters would likely only practice with dry hose and would cause little damage.
City Attorney Robert Snyder, said the city and district would need to insure the property to $2 million, rather than the $1 million it’s currently at.
Gourley said she had some concerns with handing the building over to the fire department for training.
“There’ve been a lot of ideas for the use of this building,” she said, “If we’re going to take this building and fill it with smoke, is there anything we need to take out of there now? You throw grown men in there with equipment and hoses, it will not be pretty when it’s done.”
Emmert responded that there would be very little smoke in the building, and none from fire. The district uses a water-based smoke replacement, similar to a fog machine.
“There’s a lot of background conversations I haven’t been a part of as a councilor,” Gourley said. “I just think we need to have a work session to discuss it.”
She also expressed concern about property damage, noting that pulling hoses through the building might damage the glass doors.
“We have not discussed the use of this building at all, until this came up,” she said. “We have not really made any decision about it.”
Trask, on the other hand, voiced strong approval for the plan, as did Mahler, who also has been a SHFAD volunteer for decades.
“In the long run it’s a good thing for the fire department,” the mayor said.
Gerson then asked about the market value of the building, which Finance Director Brandon Neish put at $681,661. City Manager Ray Towry disagreed with that assessment: “I’m shocked with that valuation, to be honest. I bet they didn’t go inside it.”
He added that the fire district would pay for any damage they cause.
“Anything up to $5,000, they would fix,” he said. “If it’s higher than that, we would have a discussion for whether that’s even worth fixing.”
Mahler said the land is likely worth more than the City Hall itself, which was built in 1954.
Coleman took more of a middle path on the future of the building, noting that the IGA allows either party to terminate the agreement at any time.
“I’m not hesitant to allow the fire district to use it in the meantime as we haven’t come up with something else for it yet,” she said.
The temptation for the fire district was quite strong, as “it’s sitting next door with no immediate plan,” as Emmert said.
“It was our understanding from the beginning that it’s an empty building that’s not being used.” Emmert said. “We would not have asked to move into a very viable building.”
Gourley continued to object to committing to giving the building over to the fire district.
“I’d love to see the building razed and turned into a library,” she said.
But in the end, her objections failed, and the rest of the council voted to allow the fire district to use the building for training.