Hole-in-the-Floor Debate Returns

What is 30 feet by 30 feet, gets blamed for pushing people into cramped quarters and constitutes a political headache because it could cost $450,000 to remove?

The answer: nothing.

That is what is smack in the middle of the 14th floor in City Hall.

A balcony-like opening--dubbed “the hole”--was placed by an architect for aesthetic and symbolic reasons between the top two floors when the municipal tower was built in 1976. Not everyone was happy with it, however. From the start, the City Council was divided over its logic. And 11 years later, the hole remains a subject of debate.

“Every time you walk by it, you realize how useless it is,” Councilman Ray Grabinski said last week.

Vice Mayor Wallace Edgerton wants to close the opening and use the resulting floor space for more offices and conference rooms. But the estimated $450,000 price tag, which does not include the cost of walls or new furniture, is too steep, most council members decided recently.

Edgerton made the suggestion recently as workers were poised to renovate the 14th floor--and the council’s ground-floor chamber--to accommodate the new full-time mayor.

The concept of covering the hole was quietly rejected by Mayor Ernie Kell and council members because, as Councilman Warren Harwood explained, such an expense “is not appropriate” in a tight budget year that has already prompted the council to cut library services.

Edgerton, who wrote a memo to Kell in support of filling in the opening, said he understands his colleagues’ position. But in the long run, he continued, it would probably be cheaper to do the work now rather than later.

As it is, office space changes on the 14th floor--including an unrelated request by City Manager James C. Hankla to enclose the receptionist’s area with glass--will total about $45,000, according to Sheila Parsons, executive assistant to the mayor and council.

When City Hall was built, the mayor’s job was a part-time position held by one of the nine council members. But last spring, Kell won election as full-time mayor. And that created the need for another office to house his council replacement. To make room for the additional council member, officials decided to create a new office from a converted conference room on the top floor. Officials could not say how much they plan to spend on the upcoming renovations in the council chamber.

Perennial Space Problem

The topic of the hole is like begonias--a perennial. “It comes up about once a year,” Parsons said.

It keeps popping up, Councilman Jeff Kellogg said, because “everyone up here has a problem with space.”

Long-time Councilman Tom Clark said the balcony became controversial even before City Hall opened. A local newspaper editorialized on behalf of keeping the opening because, the paper argued, less floor space meant less staff, which meant less expense, Clark said. And eventually the council split 5-4 to leave it open.

The opening was meant to show how the City Council and the administration work closely together, officials said. Originally, the architectural drawings also called for a spiral staircase on one side and a chandelier dangling through the middle. But those extras were cut from the plan to save money.

“I fought it in the very beginning and said it should be closed. I thought it was foolish,” Clark said. Now, he continued, it’s too expensive to close.

Council Wanted on Top

Edgerton said that, originally, the 14th floor was designed for management and the 13th floor was destined for the council. “But the council got bent out of shape and wanted to look down on management,” Edgerton said.

If not filled now, the opening will likely have to be covered in the future because the space is needed, Edgerton said.

In the meantime, the topic continues to surface--sometimes as the butt of a joke.

Kellogg quipped: “I like the hole personally. I can always lean against the rail and contemplate throwing myself off the 14th floor. I know I won’t die, but they can always say ‘Jeff Kellogg threw himself off the 14th floor.”

The concept of filling in the floor opening was not the only suggestion to be shelved recently because of expense. Council members also killed another suggestion: erecting solid walls where partitions now exist between work areas used by council aides. The walls would ensure no eavesdropping--intentional or otherwise--between the various council staffs.

But most council members found it unnecessary.

Councilwoman Jan Hall agreed, saying she was surprised to read of the proposal in a memo. “Why are we doing this,” Hall said. “I don’t know what secrets we would have here that anybody would care (about.)”

“It’s public business we conduct,” Harwood said.

Clark said he is not aware that privacy--or the lack of it--is a problem for the council’s staff. Besides, he continued, “There’s a limit to how much you can spend. If it’s necessary, fine. But you can overdo it.”