I underestimated how many people have noticed (complained?) about the possibility of a new City Hall being considered during a time of tight finances. The Daily Journal did a piece on it a couple weeks ago and since then, it has been the second most common complaint after the California Dr. reconfiguration. Who knew that many people are paying attention? The DJ writes
Burlingame’s City Council is taking next steps toward a new City Hall, approving commercial real estate broker CBRE to identify commercial real estate within the city that could work for a new space. Burlingame has been exploring options for a new City Hall location since 2023 — hiring architectural firm Group 4 Architecture for a space-needs and cost estimate and real estate advisor Keyser Marston Associates to review existing city-owned property.
But hiring a real estate advisor doesn’t mean any decisions are a “done deal,” Councilmember Michael Brownrigg emphasized at the May 6 meeting, adding that the need for a new City Hall should be better explained to the public.
By my reckoning, Michael Brownrigg has that right. When I sat through the budget study session recently, he was the first councilor to highlight the drop in the Unassigned Fund Balance from $7.7M to zero dollars in the proposed budget. Don't hold me to the exact number, but that was what I jotted down off the Zoom call. Here are the details for what's next:
CBRE will look into Burlingame’s available commercial real estate, representing the city in negotiating transaction terms if the city prefers existing commercial office space, according to a staff report detailing the two-year agreement. The brokerage group will receive a commission on any purchase or lease agreement, and will be paid $70,000 if no lease, purchase or lease-to-purchase transaction is completed, the staff report said.
From my conversations, the first thing that is needed is a statement of what is wrong with the existing facility. Having spent a fair amount of time in there over the last 30 years, it ain't great, but it's not terrible either. Maybe we should have made the new Rec Center a little larger.
The Bay Front has lots of open office space…
Posted by: Cassandra | June 02, 2024 at 07:19 AM
I wonder if any City Staffers or Council Members have thought of "living within their means"? Apparently they have money burning a hole in their pocket and are not sensitive to the cost of living.
Posted by: Gerald Weisl | June 02, 2024 at 05:45 PM
https://www.smdailyjournal.com/news/local/burlingame-budget-prioritizing-capital-projects-and-debt/article_a962f2c8-2220-11ef-a428-4fd89412b8f4.html?utm_source=smdailyjournal.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletters%2Fheadlines%2F%3F-dc%3D1717509611&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline
Forest, meet trees.
Posted by: Phinancier | June 05, 2024 at 09:09 PM