Would bring total repair bill to $1.1M for $1.8M facility

Peachtree City officials are recommending that another $720,000 be spent to replace the faulty exterior walls of its police headquarters, which are believed to be a primary source of moisture entering the building.

Should those repairs be approved by the City Council Thursday night, the city will have spent $1.1 million on a facility that opened in 2001 and cost $1.8 million at the time.

The building is already undergoing $538,000 in repairs to its HVAC system, flooring and ceiling to respond to the moisture problems inside the building. Because those repairs are so extensive, the department is currently operating out of a rented building off Commerce Drive near Ga. Highway 74.

The city’s police headquarters has suffered from moisture entering the structure, creating mold and mildew and causing flooring to separate from the foundation. An architectural firm hired by the city last year has determined that poor design and poor construction attributed to the problems.

The exterior renovation contract, if approved, would be financed over 15 years at an annual cost of $68,000, city officials have said in a memo to the City Council.

City staff have presented other options to council, including the demolition or sale of the current building while building a new headquarters on the same site or elsewhere. But those options start at $6.4 million, including the necessary 23 months of rental payments for the temporary police headquarters, which is 6,000 square feet smaller than the permanent facility.

The city has also looked into possibly purchasing an old Photocircuits building in the city’s industrial park and converting it into a police headquarters, but the potential for environmental cleanup and other modifications to the building have left staff recommending against that option.

City Attorney Ted Meeker previously has informed Council that the statute of limitations has expired so the city can’t sue project architect Don Cobb and Associates nor project contractor Leslie Construction.