In a nutshell
Richardson City Council received an update on community input regarding different designs for the new City Hall during the meeting. The old City Hall near the current library location was damaged by a fire in August 2022.
The first option moves the City Hall building to the eastern portion of the existing campus along with maintaining the current library placement with a fountain plaza in between, based on documents included with the meeting. A green space is also included near the site of the current City Hall along with walking trail enhancements around the perimeter of the municipal complex, said Anne Stimmel, a principal with Architexas.
“It is the best blend of most of the comments we got from the community engagement,” Stimmel said. “It achieves that connection to Arapaho [Road] we’re looking for, and it does still provide close parking and easy drop-off.”
The second option would rebuild City Hall on the existing parcel, enhance the walking trail around the municipal complex, keep much of the existing parking intact and allow for the construction of a covered walkway between the library and new City Hall, Stimmel said.
Council reached a consensus based on the concept plan that the first option was preferred for the new City Hall and municipal complex development. However, while no final decision was made at the meeting, city staff were directed to proceed with the preferred option.
In both options, the iconic pecan tree that is in the current municipal complex would likely remain, Stimmel said.
By the numbers
The overall budget for the project is estimated to be about $85 million, including a $10 million project contingency.
- Building and the site: $40.4 million
- Sitework and event space: $9.8 million
- Soft costs: $9.5 million
- Furniture, fixtures and equipment: $5.34 million
- Public art: $1 million
- Relocation: $6.26 million
- Escalation: $12.74 million
What they’re saying
Staff and the project team previously received feedback earlier this summer, said Jim Dulac, director of engineering and capital projects for the city.
“We had tremendous public outreach both online and in person,” Dulac said. “We wanted to find out what kinds of access points people preferred to enter the site through [and] what kinds of amenities, site features and layout considerations for this campus [were preferred].”
Mayor Bob Dubey said he also appreciated some of the placemaking through public art that could accompany a more refined design.
“I’m real excited about the artwork going with the theme of every new building that we build,” Dubey said. “Having a real creative art feature makes it a destination, so I am in favor of that. ”
What’s next?
Staff and the consultants for the project will proceed with the preferred design and solicit public input online and at in-person open house meetings in the fall, Stimmel said. Two open houses are scheduled for the evening of Oct. 10 at the temporary City Hall and the morning of Oct. 28 at the Heights Recreation Center.
