The renewal of The Pell City Civic Center and Tennis Building is projected to reach full completion by next spring. 

The renovation process has been broken down into three categories. Tier 1 is dealing with the necessary improvements such as sheetrock and ceiling, door hardware changes and tile walls. Tier 2 and 3 is the Finish and Replace process, and is more geared to cosmetic renovations, replacing damaged frames and removing existing doors for newer ones or providing grab bars for showers are all areas of concern for the “in-users”. Tier 3 alone has 12 doors, which need to be refurbished. 

Considering all aspects, the renovation improvements and the cost to pay off trade contractors Douglas Built, RJ Mechanical, and Acker Electric is $384,705.

The council admitted that this pricing was “outside of our contract,” said Brian Muenger. 

Council members questioned the feasibility for the Civic Center needing new tile in the janitor’s office and the storage room, a tier 1 priority. Overall the council was uncomfortable with the numbers and excluded what they could, like the hard tile plan, which saved Pell City from paying $5,340 for something they considered impractical.

Tier 2 and 3 were hardly discussed as the council concentrated most of their focus on tier 1, which affects the function of the building. The council inferred to motion approval for tier 1 which tallies up to be $26,000 in renovation cost fees.  They also motioned to approve Acker for $5,459.

The council will need more clarification about tier 2 and 3. The Civic Center will have to go back to the drawing board to distinguish their wants from their needs, and to come up with a better offer next council meeting. The Civic Center renovation is currently 43% complete and scheduled to be completed by next spring.