Local News in Brief : Irvine : Council Decides Not to Sell Interim City Hall

The City of Irvine will not sell its interim city hall when its new 180,000-square-foot Civic Center opens in November at the corner of Harvard Avenue and Alton Parkway.

The City Council voted Tuesday night to lease the 40,000-square-foot building at the corner of Jamboree Boulevard and McGaw Avenue that now houses City Hall and the Police Department.

The city bought the industrial building and converted it into administrative offices eight years ago, Assistant City Manager Paul Brady Jr. said. Several years ago, Brady said, the value of the building was estimated at about $5 million. But a recent appraisal placed its value at roughly $3.2 million, he said, largely because of surplus office space in the city.

“The council felt it would be economically more sound to keep the building and lease rather than sell at this point,” Brady said.

Several groups, including the Irvine Chamber of Commerce, have expressed interest in leasing the building once the new Civic Center is completed. That project, which will house City Hall, the Police Department and a child care center, is on schedule and should be complete by mid-November, Brady said. It is being built next to a 48-acre park.

Brady said it will be April before any decision is made on the final arrangements for leasing the current City Hall.