Second round of Freedom Hall renovations approved

City commissioners on Thursday unanimously approved a more than $3.2 million proposal from Bristol, Tennessee, based BurWil Construction for renovations and additions at Freedom Hall Civic Center.Another unanimous vote on Dec. 3 deferred the proposal for two weeks after concerns were expressed about whether the proposal had been properly vetted and scrutinized under the construction manager/general contractor bidding process traditionally used by the state.Johnson City has traditionally sent out requests for proposals, and the low bidder, once the proposal is thoroughly reviewed, is chosen. In this case, RFPs were sent out in the construction manager/general contractor process and the architect, Tom Shanks, gathered four individuals who graded the five bids received.This process was used to award the bid for the new Johnson City-Washington County Animal Shelter.Mayor Clayton Stout, Vice Mayor David Tomita, and Commissioner Jeff Banyas were concerned the public might perceive the bidding process as unfair. They also wanted further time to review how the companies were scored in an effort to feel more certain about their choice."I inadvertently struck a bag of bees by some things I said earlier," Tomita said about his opinions on this process. "There's some aspects of this I'm just not comfortable with. But questions don't necessarily mean lack of support. We don't use this process that often."BurWil's Freedom Hall plan includes re-roofing, renovation of existing restrooms, the addition of new restrooms and other improvements, sound system replacement and installation of a freight elevator.This specific plan, or phase, does not include replacement of the center's 5,600 permanent seats.A $6.7 million HVAC overhaul currently is underway at Freedom Hall, which opened its doors July 5, 1974. A future contract will cover parking lot repaving and renovation of event staging areas.In August, commissioners approved a bond reimbursement that will allow the city to fund up to $11 million in improvements at the center. The 2016 fiscal budget includes that amount to cover architectural, engineering and project management costs, in addition to construction-contract costs.Additional ductwork in the pool area is among 10 approved projects aimed at fixing leaking ductwork damaged by chlorine. New ductwork in the pool locker room area also is on tap, as well as replacement of gas boilers and ceiling repair.Commissioners also unanimously approved a first reading of an ordinance regarding junked or wrecked vehicles on private property.The amended city law would give code enforcement an additional tool to deal with code violations and allow citations and summonses to be issued by the Johnson City Municipal Court for both the owner of the vehicle and the property. If neither can be located the municipal judge could order the vehicle removed."Currently, codes enforcement doesn't have the authority to tow vehicles from private property," said Development Services Director Angie Carrier. "State law does allow this if we use a municipal judge order."Vehicles would be towed to a wrecker service garage.Commissioners also unanimously approved a second reading of a request by Yee-Haw Brewing Co. owner Joe Baker to rezone about 1.4 acres at 71 Wilson Ave., where a large commercial building would be used for retail/restaurant space, a music venue and storage.Baker, representing 5 String LLC, wants to rezone the property, which sits next to Yee-Haw, from B-3 (supporting central business) to B-2 (central business).Email Gary Gray at ggray@johnsoncitypress.com. Like Gary B. Gray on Facebook at www.facebook.com/garybgrayjcp. Follow him on Twitter @ggrayjcpress.