Mayor: Keep City Hall Where it Is

FRANKLIN, La. (AP) - City Hall may stay where it is, Franklin Mayor Raymond Harris told the City Council earlier this week.

The Franklin Banner-Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/A5KYZw) the mayor believes that if a series of financing solutions is workable, the city's best option is to renovate the former E.A. Crowell Elementary School building and keep City Hall there.

Harris proposed paying off two bond issues and issuing new bonds to purchase the building from its owner, the St. Mary Parish School Board, and pay for its renovation. The city currently leases the building.

"About a month ago I contacted the school board about a mold problem we had in the building," Harris said. "I had some employees getting sick, one of them I had to move. I was hoping they'd go in half with us on waterproofing the building."

But the School Board refused, noting that the city's contract for lease of the building lays maintenance and repair squarely in Franklin's responsibility.

Harris said he first thought the city would have to move, then reconsidered.

"The best alternative, if it's affordable, is to stay here. We have all the room we need, all the parking we need. The big issue is affordability," he said.

The council took no formal action on Harris' proposal, but most council members voiced support for the idea.


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