Input Sought on New Town Hall

The Town of Mount Pleasant is pressing forward with plans to build a $22 million town hall on Ann Edwards Drive. The town's plans are to replace its current municipal complex, which is described as unsafe and outmoded for its current uses.

The town will begin soliciting public input through an online survey system starting Aug. 15. The site encourages residents to sign up now to take part. The town recently posted a FAQ document that explains why a new town hall is needed. Here's what it says...

Why are you building a new Town Hall?
The current Town Hall is dysfunctional, disconnected, and unsafe. The facility consists of three separate buildings that are not capable of providing for the needs of a rapidly growing community.

Furthermore, in the event of an emergency the current facility would prevent Town staff and public officials from providing immediate assistance and operational support to the citizens. With a new Town Hall we can increase our capacity and continue to operate more efficiently so as to meet and exceed the needs of the community. 

Why are you building the new Town Hall at this location?
Several locations for a new Town Hall were reviewed by a Town Hall Committee, and this location was ultimately selected by Town Council. While this site is not located in the center of town, the selection of this site represents a significant savings in the project’s budget. 

Why spend money for a new Town Hall instead of using the money for other things such as infrastructure repair or hiring more police officers?
The project funding for the new Town Hall comes from a special revenue source called Tax Increment Financing, or “TIF”. These funds can be used for a new Town Hall, but they cannot be used to fund general operations, such as public safety. Additionally, the funds must be used on public redevelopment projects within the TIF district.

There are five areas in Mount Pleasant that are approved for the use of TIF funds: East Cooper Gateway, Coleman Boulevard, Bowman Road/K-Mart, U.S. 17/Isle of Palms Connector, and I-526 Gateway and Long Point Road. Without the ability to use TIF money to fund this project, the Town would have had to use General Fund money to build the new Town Hall. How much does the project cost?It is too early in the process to establish the final cost for a new Town Hall, but we expect the total cost to be around $22Million. 

Will the public football field, track, and gym be removed?
The field and track will remain, but the gym will not. We are currently working to establish sufficient funding to construct a new double gymnasium as a replacement. 

How will the public be involved in this process?
Town officials and staff are committed to providing the public with multiple opportunities to participate in the design and construction of the new Town Hall. As part of their contract, Stubbs, Muldrow, Herrin architects firm will be responsible for hosting and facilitating public charrettes.

These charrettes are public meetings where the architects will present information about the new Town Hall and solicit public input. In addition to these charrettes, the Town is very excited to announce the launch of a new interactive program called Mind Mixer. This user-friendly website will enable citizens to access information about the new Town Hall 24/7 and provide them with the opportunity to answer questions and offer their recommendations about the design of the new facility. Mind Mixer provides a forum for citizens to share and respond to ideas, as well as to receive feedback from Town staff regarding the status of their ideas. The Town will also continue to engage citizens via social media outlets, as well as through direct contact with citizen groups such as homeowner’s associations. 

Why is public input important for this project?
Receiving feedback from the public is of utmost importance for this project. The bottom line is this: creative and practical contributions from the people of Mount Pleasant will directly shape our new world-class Town Hall. The public charrettes, Mind Mixer, social media outreach, and informational meetings will enable Town staff and the project team to gather input from all citizens.

The combination of these outreach efforts provide multiple access points for the public to engage in this process. The new Town Hall will be a source of civic pride and a representation of Mount Pleasant’s quality of life. Without significant public input, the new building is simply that…a new building. Conversely, with heavy public involvement and idea sharing, the new building becomes Mount Pleasant’s new Town Hall.