A potential makeover for downtown Glendale could include an extensive reworking of Glendale City Hall as leaders push to make the area into a revitalized entertainment destination.
The modernization and revitalization proposal, known as Downtown Campus Reinvestment Project, would include renovations to City Hall, Council Chambers, Murphy Park, the Murphy Park amphitheater and a parking garage. Estimated costs for the project are:
- City Hall: $39.75M,
- Amphitheater: $10.5M,
- Parking Garage: $4.29M,
- Council Chambers: $4.1M,
- Murphy Park: $4.5M, and
- Continuity of Operations: $6.84M.
Glendale would need to come up with approximately $49M more money than it allocated in the adopted Fiscal Years 2022-2031 Capital Improvement Plan to execute the proposal in total.
Assuming Council chooses to proceed with the plan, according to a preliminary work schedule there would first be a three-month procurement period followed by a 12-month design phase during which operations would move to various temporary locations. Construction on the City Hall, Council Chambers, amphitheater and parking garage would take 16 months and be followed by nine months of construction at Murphy Park.
Glendale has seen major growth in recent years. With all past numbers adjusted for inflation, an economic analysis shows per capita sales tax collections have increased from $462/resident in 2005 to $735 today. General fund revenues are up from $174M in 2010 to $241M in fiscal year 2020. One time revenues – such as permitting fees, development impact fees and others – have grown from $4.5M in FY 2018 to $37M in FY 2021. Meanwhile, the City’s general bonded per capita debt has decreased by 50% since 2010. (Source)
