Killeen continues talks on downtown property plans Posted On: Tuesday, Nov. 3 2009 05:09 AM By Hailey Persinger
Killeen Daily Herald

Killeen City Council members will resume their discussion tonight regarding future plans for the former First Baptist Church property.

The council discussed plans for the 80,00-square-foot property earlier this year but voted down a proposal to allow city, county and Head start offices to move in.

After a month on the market at an asking price of $2 million, the building only garnered one $80,000 bid, which council members rejected in September. Tonight's meeting will be the first brainstorming session the council has had since that vote.

"I think a good discussion tomorrow afternoon will lead us in the direction of the resolution," Councilman Kenny Wells said. "We really haven't had a good sit-down discussion where we bounce ideas off each other."

Before the decision to put the building up for sale, discussions about its potential uses included suggestions for everything from natural science exhibits to museums. While none of those caught on, tonight's discussion will allow council members to introduce new ideas.

Councilwoman JoAnn Purser said her desire to drive traffic downtown has never wavered since she first proposed several ideas for museums and attractions.

"Hopefully it'll be a kind of domino effect," she said. "If I can get 50 to 100 KISD kids there every day being inspired to want to educate themselves, and then those children want to go back there on the weekends with the moms and dads and grandpas and aunts and uncles, then I think we've done something good for the community."

Whatever the council decides, Councilman Larry Cole said he wants to hear feedback from Killeen residents before any more money goes into the project.

He plans to propose a citizen-led committee that could give council members an idea of what their constituents want to see.

"The main thing is not put any more money into it," he said.

With about $800,000 in energy efficiency and community development block grants, the city does have some money available for renovations.

The city also has $1.5 million on reserve for repairs and renovations.

For Mayor Pro Tem Scott Cosper and Councilman Ernest Wilkerson, using the $800,000 in grant money is a priority since the deadline for its use is September 2010.

"Let's deal with what's obvious right now," Wilkerson said. "Let's deal with the grant money. Everything else will fall into place."

Contact Hailey Persinger at haileyp@kdhnews.com or (254) 501-7568.