Title
Recommendation to Provide Direction to Staff on a Facility Improvement Plan for the Veterans' Memorial Building.
This action is exempt from environmental review pursuant to California Environmental Quality Act Guidelines Section 15331 (Historical Resource Restoration/Rehabilitation). (Public Works 31041520)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Jennifer Ott, City Manager
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
On January 29, 1996, the City of Alameda (City) City Council adopted Resolution No. 12737 transferring ownership of the historic Veterans' Memorial Building from the County of Alameda (County) to the City. The Veterans' Memorial Building is currently used by veterans groups, Alameda Recreation and Parks Department (ARPD), and the Alameda Free Library. Building expenses are supported by two Internal Service Funds (ISFs): Building Maintenance and Building Replacement. 96.25% of facility costs assessed through the ISFs are funded through ARPD (General Fund) and the remaining 3.75% from the Library Fund. Building maintenance costs total $173,000 per year. The City's existing 10-year capital plan was designed and based on building preservation and ongoing support of existing uses at the building.
Since 2017, the City has invested over $800,000 in building improvements including, but not limited to, roof repairs, lead abatement, front fa?ade restoration and new flagpole installation. The veterans are advocating for specific additional improvements. Some of these improvements are already complete (e.g., Wi-Fi installation), others are included in the existing 10-year capital plan (e.g., carpet replacement), and still others are large-scale investments, not otherwise planned, to restore portions of the building currently not in use (kitchen and bar).
During the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023-25 budget adoption process, City Council appropriated an additional $100,000 of General Fund monies in FY 2023-24 and directed staff to add the heating system r...
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