The best way to proceed with the 100 Seneca at Cornplanter Square project in Oil City was the focus of a lengthy discussion Tuesday at the monthly Venango County Economic Development Authority meeting.
Authority board member Rod Griffin raised questions about the costs associated with renovating 100 Seneca, maintaining the building once it is finished and getting a return on the investment, as well as the long-term viability of the building.
Griffin said the project at the former Mellon Bank building in Oil City’s North Side business district needs a strategic plan and a business plan, such as one would need to have to apply for a bank loan, to “know where we are, where we are going and where we want to be.”
In response, Venango County commissioner Sam Breene stressed multiple times that the county and authority are not spending money they don’t have. Instead, the renovations at 100 Seneca are progressing as the authority has money to cover the costs of the various phases, Breene added.
Breene also said he thought Griffin made a good point regarding writing out plans for the building so that everyone can be on the same page.
After a lengthy discussion, Breene amended the meeting agenda to include the creation of a strategic planning committee to work out leasing agreements for the space in the building and to look into the return on investment of 100 Seneca.
The board unanimously approved creating that committee.
“Your group had something passed on to you. Those who voted unanimously to begin this project were enthusiastic but they lacked a strategic plan from day one and never put the project on a business footing,” said Dr. James Knarr, who has attended the authority meetings since the 100 Seneca project began several years ago.
He added that the project is at a crossroads and if it can be put on a business model it can be made a success.
“My father told me, son we can afford anything we want but not everything we want,” Knarr added.
Commissioner Albert Abramovic said the idea of making a strategic plan for the bank building project has been around from day one, though it was not implemented.
He gave Venango County Planning Commission executive director Jason Ruggiero, economic authority executive director Emily Lewis and Diona Brick, the county’s chief financial officer, credit for keeping the project on track.
“Certain things happen because of certain people. I’m thankful we are where we are today,” Abramovic said.
In addition to creating the strategic planning committee, the authority approved a contract with DesignLab at a cost of about $200,000 for architectural design for the first floor of 100 Seneca.
Brick said the architectural design drawings and other documents that make up a bid package are necessary for putting the first floor project out to bid.
“Any grant we apply for requires stamped drawings from an architect,” Breene said.
The board also approved having a structural engineer from Barbar Hoffman examine the structural integrity of the first floor ceiling, a recommendation made by the John Canning historic preservation group that previously looked at the ceiling.
Both the structural engineer and representatives from John Canning would be on site for three days to investigate the structural integrity of the ceiling.
The results of their examination would “start to narrow down choices” for what to do with the ceiling — preserve it, restore it or replace it, Ruggiero said.
“Bidding a project provides true budgeted costs within 10%”, Brick said.
Because the authority doesn’t have the funds to do the whole project at once, it will split the work into two parts.
The first part will be the critical infrastructure for the entire building — HVAC, elevator, electric, water and sewage, Brick said. That project will benefit the entire building and the authority has the funds to accomplish the project, it was noted Tuesday.
Breene said that by the end of 2022, the critical infrastructure will be completed and paid for at a minimum.
“Get the needs done first then focus on the wants,” Breene said.
Breene also noted during the meeting that once the HVAC and other critical infrastructure is in place, it will prevent the first-floor ceiling and other parts of the building from deteriorating further due to unregulated temperature changes with the seasons.
Breene said that once the critical infrastructure is in place for the entire building, the costs of building out the other floors with cosmetic improvements will be lower.
The other part of the project will be developing the fifth floor into an innovation center. There is currently a budget shortfall for this part of the project, Brick said.
Some of the grant funds the authority has received can only be used for the fifth floor and must be used by March 2023, Breene said.
Breene also noted the authority is waiting to hear back on a $3 million RACP grant and a federal earmark of $400,000 that he is optimistic the county will get. And the panel is also working on the federal historic tax credit that could generate $1.5 million depending on how the building is assessed.
