City seeks expert to assess Memorial Hall needs

Jan. 9—A request for proposals to evaluate needed repairs to Memorial Hall to make it safe for public use again has been issued by the city of Joplin.

The city is seeking proposals from architects or engineers to assess needed repairs and report on estimated costs. Those interested are asked to submit their proposals to the city by Jan. 29, said Dan Johnson, director of public works.

He said city officials want to get a structural assessment of the building and analyses of the building's systems, including mechanical, electrical and plumbing, along with those expected costs.

City Manager Nick Edwards said in October that an architectural assessment would have to be done to answer City Council questions about what repairs would be necessary to prevent further deterioration of Memorial Hall.

"We will have to go through a bid process, which takes us a little bit of time to bring on an architect to help us find those costs," Edwards said in September. "Another component is a survey. We will need to develop a survey and present that to council to see if that will answer the questions they want answered."

The council in September called for a report on the cost to prevent further decline of the building at 212 W. Eighth St. and the cost of repairs that would allow the city to reopen the building for public use. The building has been closed since June 2020 when a partial roof collapse occurred.

Johnson said this week that an examination of the roof will be part of the structural analysis.

City staff has been checking on the building regularly. Johnson said the damaged roof section affects one small part of the roof. At the time of the collapse, the roof was patched and wood braces were installed to support that area. Since then, some small cracks have been seen in the roof structure, so a new inspection and report is needed, he added.

A meeting with the person or company selected from the proposals will be held to determine the scope of the assessment.

Public survey

Edwards said council member Chuck Copple suggested that a public survey be done on potential uses and that is something that will be part of the assessment.

The consultant hired would be asked to survey the public about how residents would like to use the building or what activities they would like to see.

Johnson said input from the council, stakeholders and residents will be helpful in determining what to do.

The city-owned multipurpose building with 2,700 seats will reach its 100-year anniversary in 2025.

In April 2022, voters rejected a $30 million ballot proposal by the city to increase property taxes to repair and renovate the building and add an expansion wing on the west side. Opponents said they did not support the amount of the project and/or did not want to pay more property taxes.

Although the more expensive expansion and renovation were recommended by those who prepared the report, it also outlined a repair estimate of $6.4 million that could stabilize the building.

That assessment was done by SFS Architecture, of Kansas City, which also prepared the details of the proposed expansion and potential uses for the expanded space.

That report stated the roof collapse was related to corrosion of exposed steel bars in the roof beams. The report recommended that concrete repairs be done to restore the integrity of the concrete roof structure. That would require temporary shoring, chipping of the bad concrete, cleaning and coating the exposed reinforcing steel, and patching the areas with a concrete repair material.

While a list of issues with the building may sound serious, "all in all, the structural assessment of the building was not as bad as some folks may have thought it to be," SFS architect Brian Garvey had said of the firm's findings then.

"It's actually a very solid building," he said. "There's just some things that need to be stopped in their tracks with any project that occurs in the future to make the building safe and prepare it for another 100 years of service to the community."

Other problems

The problems cited by the SFS report in addition to the roof:

—Two issues are related to a 1976 building remodel. One of those is a crumbling concrete ramp across the front of the building that was described in the 2020 report as being in poor condition and in need of removal. It was added for accessibility, but soil movement under the ramp has caused settling, resulting in cracking. The weight of the stairs at one time collapsed a sewer line beneath it. The ramp has been closed to the public for several years.

—The other is cracking in the exterior brick wall near the elevator at the northeast corner of the building. The cracking is the result of foundation settling, according to the report.

—Mortar joints at the bottom of the building's exteriors holding stone panels are loose or deteriorated. The report recommended fresh tuck-pointing to restore the joints and prevent moisture infiltration.

—Discolored parapet walls were found indicating moisture issues with the brick walls. The architects recommended removing the existing paint and replacing it with a breathable coating that would allow moisture vapor to escape.

The building was dedicated as a war memorial and for the use of veterans organizations. In recent years, the Robert S. Thurman American Legion post had met there, and Legion officials have said they would like to be able to use the hall again.

The city manager and public works director said they would expect a report on the building that could be taken to the council sometime in March.