A fire in the fall of 2017 nearly destroyed the City Hall of Bisbee, Arizona, leaving nothing but a shell of the structure in its wake.
In the more than two years since, city officials have been discussing plans to demolish what’s left of the century-old, rectangular-shaped administration building.
In February, the city issued a Request for Proposals asking for ideas on how much it would cost to level and remove the three-story structure at 118 Arizona Street.
At the same time, plans have been informally aired regarding the construction of a new City Hall, which it is thought will take around $2 million to build.
Although it has also been proposed that the burned-out City Hall should be restored because it is a historic building, city leaders, noting that the structure is not listed on the National Register of Historic Places, have suggested that such a move may prove too cost-prohibitive.
Built by the Calumet and Arizona Mining Company in 1906, the structure has served as the Bisbee City Hall since 1974.
Bisbee’s city administrative offices are currently located in a building that once served as the city’s juvenile detention center at 915 S. Tovreaville Road.
A decision regarding both the demolition of the old City Hall and the construction of an entirely new building could be made by summer.
By Garry Boulard
