Renovating Healdsburg warehouse could cost $3.8 million

The fate of an old fruit-packing warehouse in downtown Healdsburg could be getting closer to being resolved.

The question of whether to renovate or tear down the 1920s-era warehouse across from City Hall is the topic of a Planning Commission meeting scheduled for 7 o?clock Tuesday.

Known as the Purity or Cerri building, it was purchased by the city five years ago with an eye toward demolition and creating a parking lot.

But some rallied to save the building as a symbol of Healdsburg?s agricultural heritage.

The city now has developed two conceptual plans for the property, including a $3.8 million renovation of the structure that would provide a public meeting space for community events and also a site to relocate the farmer?s market.

But the cost appears to be a big hurdle.

?I don?t think it?s a good use of public funds,? City Councilman Gary Plass said Monday. ?Saving that building makes no sense to me. I appreciate the historical value of buildings. But that was a barn, a warehouse. Structurally, it doesn?t have the integrity to save it.?

But Barbara Tuscany, a graphics designer who is lobbying to save the structure, disagreed:

?It?s always been treasured by folks with the farm and agricultural community. That was their place,? she said.

She said that preserving the building is ?a way to honor our agricultural history and roots.?

There is also $1.3 million alternative, which Plass favors, that would tear down the existing structure, but perhaps keep its ?brick tin sheeting? facade. In the building?s place would be a permanent, multi-use ?shade structure? that would host events throughout the year and also offer a home for the Farmers? Market.

Knocking down the warehouse would help create more space for an alternative venue to the popular Healdsburg Plaza a block and a half away, according to community services director David Mickaelian.

The Plaza is booked throughout much of the year with semi-weekly events featuring concerts, arts and crafts, antiques and other festivals.

The one-acre site could also provide parking when not used for events.

In recent years, the warehouse was known as the Purity Products building for the company that had its offices there and stored fertilizers and pesticides.

It was built in 1922 by Tuscan immigrant Romeo Cerri and variously stored everything from grapes to hops, raw sugar, dried fruits and nuts.

Other members of the City Council, who will eventually decide the fate of the building, were not immediately available for comment Monday. But in the past some have questioned whether it is worth spending so much redevelopment money to keep the structure.

Both plans would likely require funding from the city?s Redevelopment Agency, a tenuous proposition considering the state?s recent decision to help balance its budget by borrowing redevelopment funds from cities.

?It?s pretty obvious this project, because of funding, may be challenging at best,? said Mickaelian.

But Tuscany questioned some of the cost estimates saying it may not be so expensive to allow the building to remain standing. And tearing it down and creating a parking lot could be more expensive than anticipated, she said, if it triggers a clean-up of toxic soil under the structure.

Consulting engineers said although the building shows signs of neglect, moisture infiltration and wear and tear, most of it is structurally sound and does not pose a threat of imminent collapse.

The city does have more than $100,000 set aside for an environmental impact report to weigh the various options for the property.

The Planning Commission is being asked to make a recommendation to the City Council, which also acts as the Redevelopment Agency.