$8 Million Plans Underway

Jefferson City leaders are finalizing plans surrounding the city’s new conference center. They say they will only be able to sink about 8 million dollars into the project, and that money will come from the lodging tax approved by voters last year. City leaders say they will try to finalize plans Monday on whether they want the project to run on city money or other funding sources. They say they are working with a sense of urgency to get everything set in stone, but they will not rush any decision. If they take their time and do everything correctly, the conference center should be a boom for the city’s economy. Leaders have a list of what they want and need for the new center, but they need to agree on a balance in the request for proposal, or RFP process. “There’s a little bit of concern,” Council Member Carrie Carroll said Monday, “we want to know what we’re asking for but we don’t want to be too specific because we want some creativity from the developer as well.”Some of the details in the RFP will address things like how much office space, the color of the brick, and the number of restrooms. But the details like whether the city will own and operate the center, or be sold to a private developer will take longer to decide. City leaders say there are so many items to decide on, they believe Monday night’s meeting will just be a start to a lengthy process. Jefferson City Administrator Nathan Nickolaus said, “there are a lot of decisions that need to be made, so for the council to vote on every single one of those, even if they only spend 10-15 minutes on each one, to work through the entire list will take more time than we have.” Council members say the best thing they have right now, are options. They say those options include the location too. Council has always considered a spot on McCarty Street, just south of the Capitol, but now members believe a location near the old state prison may look more attractive to developers. “We’re ready to see what kind of interest there is working on this project,” Carroll said. “We’re ready to hear back from potential developers and see what they envision for our conference center.” Leaders expect the entire planning process to take at least three meetings. The next meeting is slated for October 22.