Canton town hall to relocate

Apr. 24—CANTON — Despite a massive setback from the August 2021 flooding that destroyed major municipal buildings and parks, progress is being made to return Canton to normal.

The dog park has been restored, new businesses are launching and damaged ones are reopening. The splash pad in Sorrells Park is being poured and funds are being raised for an all-accessible playground.

News delivered last week means a decision can now be made on a question that has lingered for months — what to do about town hall?

That's because the Federal Emergency Management Agency declared the municipal/police building was "substantially damaged," terminology meaning it sustained more than 50% damage, said Town Manager Nick Scheuer.

"When a property is termed substantially damaged by FEMA, it allows us to pursue a relocation of our facility and recover the replacement value plus additional associated costs," Scheuer said. "This is good news for us as we don't want to continue to operate in the floodplain."

The replacement value of town hall and the police department has not yet been determined, so the town doesn't know how much money it will have to work with, Scheuer said. The Canton fire department, which is across the alley from town hall did not receive a "substantially damaged" classification, however. That means the town will most likely pursue a buyout option to relocate that facility as well, Scheuer added.

If the ultimate value placed on town hall and the police department falls short of the relocation/replacement costs, Scheuer said there is a possibility of state and other grant funding to help build a new town hall and emergency services facilities.

"The town has pursued many options for new facilities, and although I can't share that information yet, we will have some exciting news to share in the future," he said.

Mayor Zeb Smathers said the town is pulling out all stops to find resources to rebuild Canton, including a search for every available federal and state grant and pressing the state legislature to allocate line item funding for town facilities.

"We are applying for everything and anything," he said, praising Scheuer, Lisa Stinnett and Natalie Walker for their tireless work on the town's behalf. "Having the substantially damaged designation will definitely help us get the resources we need."

It is a certainty that both town hall and the police department will be relocating, and the town board is motivated to relocate the fire department, which was also damaged, but didn't reach the magic 50% mark for the substantially damaged designation.

Prior to that designation, town leaders considered elevating town hall, leaving the bottom area as a parking area.

"Initially we looked at everything, including elevating, but when we saw the expense, it became clear that wasn't a valid option," Smathers said.

Once town hall and the police department relocate, a large swath of the downtown area will be vacant. Smathers said what happens next to that property depends on what other businesses decide to do, including Bethel Christian Academy, which owns the large building that was formerly used as the YMCA.

"We'll do what we can based on rules and regulations," he said. "Obviously, recreation fields probably make the most sense."

Temporary home

Meanwhile, town services should be consolidated in a single area by next week when the administrative offices move into the temporary pods set up near the town garage across the railroad tracks from Wells Funeral Home.

The police department moved into its side of the structure last week, said Police Chief Scott Sluder, as he provided a tour of the office spaces, training/meeting room and records room. "Now we're able to have the whole operation in one site," Sluder said. "We're very excited about being in one place to do our jobs."Prior to the move, the police department was operating out of unconnected units parked in the Canton Baptist Church parking lot. Other town administrative functions were being conducted in scattered sites around town, but the $105,000 temporary pod setup will now offer a single site to serve town residents.