Des Moines moves forward on Nationwide building purchase for police HQ, other city offices
The Des Moines City Council voted without dissent Monday to set a public hearing to approve $56.3 million in financing to purchase a former Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. office building in downtown Des Moines to serve as a potential new home for the city's police department and other currently scattered offices.
Residents spoke both against and for the purchase, with some questioning why they hadn't been privy to the exact purpose the property would serve.
The purchase would give the city the five-floor, 360,000-square-foot building at 1200 Locust St., which, once renovated, could replace the 100-year-old police station at the corner of East Court Avenue and East First Street on the edge of the planned Market District development south of the East Village.
“I’m asking the city to postpone this vote until the city has released the plans for the building publicly,” said Adam Callanan, who balked at the idea of potentially spending millions more on the Des Moines Police Department, which is operating with a budget of $78 million in the current fiscal year. “The city should not be taking on millions of dollars in debt for a project without releasing what the plans are.”
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The building also could house city workers currently in the deteriorated Argonne Armory on the east bank of the Des Moines River near City Hall. With room for several services to works side by side, the move would be an opportunity to consolidate city workspace, city officials said. It would also allow the city to avoid a $160 million price tag to rebuild or retrofit existing buildings.
City spokesperson Peter Zemansky clarified that several city services in addition to the police would relocate to the Nationwide offices. Pending the exact design and layouts of the space, neighborhood services, development services, information technology and part of the city’s legal department also could end up there, he said.
Parking lot added to purchase plan
The council also approved several amendments to its agreement with Nationwide, including the acquisition of a parking lot to the west of the structure at 1300 Locust St. at no additional cost. The amendments also would extend the closing dates for the office building and parking lot to the end of 2023 and an already planned purchase of the building's connected parking garage to the end of 2024.
The purchase price — $30 million for the office building, $10.6 million for the garage — is unchanged from the original agreement. The remainder of the $56.3 million would cover the cost of improvements and other expenses so the building could house the various departments.
City Council member Josh Mandelbaum, who represents the city's downtown area, noted that some of the items residents registered to speak about consisted of funding for general building improvements, including heating, ventilation and air conditioning, electrical and plumbing work. The city manager's office still is determining the best uses for the building, and city has to prepare for it to meet those needs — be it IT, neighborhood services or a police headquarters.
“We're still going through the due-diligence phase," Mandelbaum said. "There are high-level plans, not what it looks like yet, but what it will need to look like."
The city plans to hire designers to produce a detailed architectural plan for the building, a process that could take the rest of this year and next year, Deputy City Manager Matt Anderson told the Register in July. Construction could start in late 2024 or 2025.
Addison Lathers covers growth and development for the Des Moines metro. Reach her at ALathers@registermedia.com.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Nationwide office purchase by city of Des Moines set for public hearing
