Price of old federal building should be public, Purcell says

As the Cape Girardeau County Commission considers whether to purchase the old federal building in Cape Girardeau, one commissioner is raising objections to federal rules that require secrecy about the price.

District 2 Commissioner Jay Purcell wants to hold at least one public hearing for county residents to voice their opinion on the sale. In a letter to John Robinson, branch chief of the General Services Administration's real property disposal and redeployment office in Fort Worth, Texas, Purcell asked for permission to reveal the sale price.

Purcell also raised objections to the GSA's rules requiring that it not reveal either the appraised value of the property or the deductions included in that appraisal for deficiencies in the building. Known problems with the building include asbestos and a need for roof repairs.

"To summarize, I do agree that Cape Girardeau County should try to purchase the old federal building as long as it is purchased at a fair price that would leave room for some substantial remodeling expenses," Purcell wrote. "But I am against holding closed-door meetings and obligating the citizens of Cape Girardeau County to millions of dollars in real estate, remodeling and other ongoing expenses with no public hearings or public input."

Seeking the building

The county has long coveted the building as a replacement for the Common Pleas Courthouse and Courthouse Annex on Lorimier Street. The building at 339 Broadway was declared surplus early this year, but negotiations with Cape Girardeau County were delayed while the Rev. Larry Rice sought the building for use as a homeless shelter. Rice's application was denied, but he has said he will sue to reverse the decision.

The commission has discussed the potential purchase in closed session. GSA, the federal government's agency for property management, expects an offer from the county by July 31 in order to complete any sale by the end of the year, said Charlie Cook, spokesman for the GSA's offices in Kansas City, Mo.

Keeping the GSA's estimate of the building's value private is important in case the county either doesn't make an offer or the offer is rejected, Cook said. If the county does not buy the building, it will be sold at auction.

"We wouldn't want to artificially limit the market price at public auction," Cook said. "If we provide all the information, it limits our ability to properly market the building."

In a response sent Monday, Robinson told Purcell the GSA's estimate of what the building should bring from the county should remain confidential. But if the county wants to make an offer and ask the public if the price seems fair, that would not violate federal rules, he wrote.

Differing opinions

If the county had GSA's list of the building's problems, it would make deciding how much to offer an easier task, Presiding Commissioner Gerald Jones said. The GSA is offering the building "as is," Jones noted. "It is like a shot in the dark. It is the damndest thing I ever heard of."

But he doesn't agree with Purcell that the GSA's assigned value needs to be made public or that the commission necessarily needs a public hearing on the purchase.

"We've been elected to make those decisions, and we will make those decisions," Jones said. "I don't know about a public hearing. We haven't even discussed it."

The county has had an appraisal done and has its own list of the building's problems, Jones said. And he's comfortable discussing the price and deciding what to offer in a closed meeting.

"They said it was mandatory that we not discuss in public the private price they have offered to us," Jones said. "If we didn't buy it or we couldn't arrive at a figure, they didn't want that for the public to know."

At one point, Jones said Purcell "is trying to get in the middle and screw things up."

Purcell has the same information as the other two commissioners, Jones said. "Purcell is a crazy guy and he has just gone nuts."

The commission will make a decision by the July 31 deadline, Jones said. "If they accept it, we will announce the price."

The issue isn't whether the county should make an offer, Purcell said. Instead, he said it is a question of openness. "I don't work for the GSA. I don't work for Commissioner Jones. I don't work for Commissioner [Paul] Koeper. I work for Cape Girardeau County."

rkeller@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent addresses:

339 Broadway, Cape Girardeau. Mo.

1 Barton Square, Jackson, Mo.