LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — The cost to preserve an old building within the Historic Commercial Center has soared to more than $25 million as locals voice frustrations over delays for the building’s future.
FOX5 has told you about the calls to preserve Orleans Square within Commercial Center.
Wednesday, a new presentation from the Clark County Redevelopment Agency showed a more accurate picture of costs: rehabilitation would soar from $15.6 million to $25.3 million (to make it available for leasing space). To bring the building up to code, officials presented a list of necessary repairs, including roof replacement, sprinkler system installation, restroom upgrades, and more.
Demolition, on the other hand, would be $3.8 million; county officials point out that construction of a new facility would be dozens of millions of dollars more.
“That building is more than 50 years old. It’s got great bones; it just needs some upgrades. It needs a little love and care. That takes dollars to do that. But also, we don’t have those kind of buildings all over Vegas,“ said Monica Gresser of Brazen Architecture, one of the last tenants at Orleans Square; dozens of tenants have moved out, and some believed that rehabilitation would have begun by now.
“It’s been all of this back and forth with, are we going to demo? Are we going to renovate? It’s a lot of back and forth. We lost a lot of our business neighbors,” Gresser said.
County Commissioners discussed what also needs to come next: a relocation plan for the small business. Commissioner Marilyn Kirkpatrick called for a decision to happen soon.
“I feel like we’re just spinning in a circle, and we all agree that we want a relocation program,” Kirkpatrick said. “I think the full grant process should be done and it should be executed by the end of the year. I mean, give people closure and move on,” she said.
Commissioner Tick Segerblom said a final decision could come in the next couple of months.
“We’ll find out when we actually vote on the $25 million, but I haven’t heard anybody say, no, let’s tear it down,” he said.
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