The County Commissioners Are A Real Three Stooge Act

[Bill Call]

For some strange reason the Cuyahoga County Commissioners have decided that the most pressing need of the County is a new County office building.

At a time when downtown real estate prices are soft and vacancies are high the Commissioners have decided to:

Pay $22 million for the old Ameritrust complex, a complex that has been vacant for over 20 years.

Pay $9 million to have the newly purchased building torn down.

Pay $13.5 million to have the asbestos removed from the building so it can be torn down.

Pay $13.5 million to have a new building designed.

After spending $58 million dollars the County won't even have a whole in the ground. That will cost extra.

Nyuk, nyuk, nyuk!

[Bryan Schwegler]

I remember reading about their decision to do this a while back in the Plain Dealer. I want to say that after all the comparisons, it was cheaper for them in the long run to buy the complex and build a new building than it was for them to continue to rent space all over the city.

Sorry I don't have the details, but that's what I recollect.

[Bill Call]

.....it was cheaper for them in the long run to buy the complex and build a new building than it was for them to continue to rent space all over the city.

I don't buy it. The County currently owns most of its space so there is no savings by not renting since for the most part they don't rent.

The BP Building has a market value of $129 million. During the time that the Commissioners were discussing the issue of a new headquarters the building was available. For $129 million. Erieview Tower recently sold for around $35 million. The county will pay more than that for a vacant lot.

If you were shopping for a vacant lot downtown would you pay $58 million?

Ultimately this project will cost the county a half a billion dollars.

[Stan Austin]

Looks like we all gotta start smoking again !

[David Anderson]

Bill and All -

Comments made regarding this "priority" project are correct. The dollar amounts are outrageous but the County claims that it will have the capacity on E. 9th Street to consolidate operations in rented offices throughout the county.

However, the Commissioners are also viewing this project as a way to add to the energy and economy along Euclid Avenue. (They are not worried about taking economic activity away from the footprints of their multiple sites across the county.)

So, they believe the economic multiplier impact of consolidating employees and operations on Euclid and East 9th is a worthy investment of what will come close to $100 million (Bill points out correctly that it will cost $58 million just to create suitable hole on which to build).

Where would downtown Cleveland's economy be without government offices and workers (school board, City Hall, justice, State, Federal, County)?