Orangeburg breaks ground for new city hall

Officials hope it will help the city better serve its residents and spur additional development downtown.

“I can just envision what we’re seeing here in Orangeburg and the potential that we have here and how things can change,” Mashburn Construction President Lee Mashburn said.

“This could be the catalyst. This could be the thing that changes everything, right here,” he said.

The new city hall will be located at the corner of Russell and Broughton streets. The former bank will be renovated and expanded to allow city administration to move from its current location in Stevenson Auditorium on Middleton Street.

Mayor Michael Butler thanked the people who attended the groundbreaking ceremony.

“Breaking ground for the new city hall is one of the most positive steps that we have taken in this city,” he said.

City Administrator Sidney Evering thanked Orangeburg City Council for following through on its vision to revitalize downtown.

“Everyone knows how important downtown is for a city,” Evering said. “Our downtown has seen better days, but its best days are yet ahead.”

The new city hall will have about 17,000 square feet of space, compared to the current 6,000 square feet available to the city in the auditorium building, Evering said.

The new facility will be able to hold all city departments except the Department of Public Safety and City Services department, which will remain at their current locations, he said.

“You can come to one building and get everything that you need done here and so that in and of itself is to be thankful for,” he said.

City administration will have extra space for future growth, Evering said.

Butler said the new city hall will be more accessible for both employees and citizens.

His office is located on the second floor of the Stevenson Auditorium, along with the city’s communications and information technology departments. Some residents have difficulty climbing the stairs to get there, he said.

“We look forward to seeing our residents, because in this building, I won’t have to climb any steps,” he said. “We’ll have an elevator, because I was giving out.”

The city council chambers will remain on Middleton Street, city spokesperson Jennifer Van Cleave has said.

Evering said he wants the project to be “cutting edge” and something the “whole city could be proud of.”

The project will expand the existing building’s square footage with an additional third floor and rooftop terrace. An elevator will be added to the back of the building facing Kimbrell’s furniture store, Mashburn said.

The current elevator in the building is not functioning or working well with the planned layout, so it will be removed and replaced with the new elevator, Mashburn said. The existing elevator may be added back at a later date, he said.

The building will receive a new facade with new windows and brickwork, he said.

“It’s going to really spice things up a little bit,” he said.

The former bank’s vault will remain in the structure because it’s a unique feature and would be expensive to remove, Evering said. City officials have not decided what the vault will be used for in its new capacity, but it could house the city’s IT servers, he said.

The third floor will contain a public space, but the city is still not sure how that will exactly materialize, Evering said.

The new city hall’s parking lot will feature a green space and be designed to evoke the Edisto Memorial Gardens, he said.

Evering thanked downtown businesses for their support of the project, namely Rosalia’s Mexican Restaurant on Russell Street, which has lost access to a parking lot which is now being developed for the new city hall project.

Evering said he anticipates the parking lot will be available to Rosalia’s when it is completed, but with less space given the presence of city employees. Rosalia’s customers are encouraged to use the DPU parking lot until further notice, he said.

Construction on the building should be completed in 10 to 12 months, Mashburn said.

Columbia-based Mashburn Construction was hired by the city to renovate and expand the existing bank building in September 2022. Greenville-area MOA Architecture Inc. designed the new city hall.

The city expects to spend $7.2 million on the project, with the potential for unexpected costs, Evering said. This will be paid for with a $7 million bond from the city and $200,000 from yet to be determined grants, he said.