Pikeville moves to temporary town hall
By Laura Collins
Published in News on December 18, 2009 1:46 PM
Come January, Pikeville Town Hall employees will have a new venue.
Employees will be moving from the current location to a new 70-foot modular unit by Jan. 22. The move was brought about because of the poor condition of the current town hall, according to some board members.
The temporary town hall, which is located at 104 W. School St., is adjacent to the community center and across from WAGES Head Start. At the Dec. 7 board meeting, the town board of commissioners approved hiring C.T. Hooks Construction to build a handicapped-accessible ramp for $2,300, the final requirement that must be met before the new town hall can open.
The new space is about 2,100 square feet, almost 700 square feet larger than the current location.
The town hall will house an office for Town Administrator Kathie Fields, an office for Town Clerk Michelle Singleton and Assistant Town Clerk Karen Jennings, an office for water system operator in charge Perry Jones, a conference room, a break room, a storage/supply closet and handicap accessible restrooms, which is a change from the current location.
"We will finally have handicapped-accessible bathrooms," Ms. Singleton said. "There is no way you could get a wheelchair into the bathroom at the current town hall."
At the other end of the structure is a separate entrance for the Pikeville Police Department and an office for Chief Pascal Tucker.
"I'm looking forward to the new location because it has so much more room," Ms. Fields said. "I will miss downtown where our citizens are accustomed to walking to, but at this time (the new location) will be able to better fit our needs."
The modular unit is already owned by the town, so there will not be a monthly rent fee, but the town is responsible for utilities used in the structure. Also, town members do not need to mail their utility checks to a new location since the P.O. Box address will remain the same.
Ms. Fields said it's possible the town offices will be in the temporary facility for up to two years.
"How long we stay is based on (the board's) decision about what they are going to do with the current town hall," she said.
The board has not yet decided whether to repair the current town hall location, construct a new location or rent/buy or use an existing facility to house a permanent town hall.