Orange City Council on Tuesday will begin the process to buy the First Financial Bank Building at 819 16th Street to turn into City Hall with room for the Convention and Visitors Bureau.
The bank will construct a new building next door on vacant land at 16th Street and Park Avenue.
The city, bank and Stark Foundation, which owns the vacant lot, have been in private negotiations for several months, the city will buy the bank building.
Stephen Lee, president and CEO of the bank, said the company had been looking ways to improve their building, which began as a small savings and loan and has had two additions.
Bank officials came to the conclusion that “probably the best thing to do is build from scratch,” Lee said.
The pending deal is explained in the agenda package for Tuesday’s meeting. City Manager Dr. Shawn Oubre said the city has been studying ways to improve City Hall for current needs.
City Hall on Green Avenue is a 1920s mansion built by industrialist Edgar Brown Jr. Brown sold the two-story, red brick mansion to the city during World War II. During the past 80 years, the building has had several reconfigurations for offices.
The original servants quarters behind the mansion were once used for the police department downstairs and a city jail upstairs. The jail has been closed for 35 years and the space used as storage. The city’s Convention and Visitors Bureau offices have been in the downstairs of the quarters for almost 20 years.
The city hired an architect to look at needs for city offices and how to modernize the buildings. “The study showed that the current design of City Hall was not conducive to the current and future needs of the city,” Oubre said.
Lee said the First Financial building will be perfect for the city’s office needs. The bank’s drive-through system can be used by the city for paying bills.
Currently, City Hall has no drive-through service. Customers paying water bills must park their cars, walk inside and stand in line.
Lee said First Financial does not have architectural plans for the new building and whether it will be two stories or one story. Orange will continue to be the First Financial headquarters for the banks throughout the Southeast Texas area, he said.
In the memo to City Council, Oubre said the First Financial building is valued at $4.75 million. The city will pay $2 million with the bank giving a gift to the city valued at $2.75 million.
City staff will look for a buyer or tenant for City Hall.
The City Council meets at 9 Tuesday morning at the council auditorium next to the Orange Public Library.
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