Jefferson County commissioners voted 2-1 to lease the The River building on Main Street in Boulder during an evening meeting at Volunteer Hall on Tuesday, April 11.
The six-month, $3,000 a month lease agreement begins May 1 and buys the county time to select the Public Health Department’s next home. Commissioners are awaiting feasibility studies for both The River building and Cottage Five on the south campus of the former Montana Developmental Center – a 10,782 square-foot building that could possibly serve as a wellness center. The completion of the Cottage Five feasibility study is expected on Sept. 1.
The decision to lease The River came after an hour-long community discussion and a rare substitute motion by commissioner Bob Mullen, trumping the original motion not to lease The River made by commissioner Dan Hagerty. Hagerty voted against the substitute motion. Commission Chair Cory Kirsch voted in favor.
“My understanding is The River would be a temporary situation, and, even if [the Public Health Department] were to move in, they don’t want to be there,” Hagerty said following his motion. “They want to be somewhere else.”
Temporary situation or not, Kirsch said he wants the option of The River building to remain on the table.
“The lease option is very desirable to me because it gives us some time to figure out which direction we want to go, because if Cottage Five falls out and The River sells, we’re back to bare ground,” Kirsch said at the meeting. “That’s why we’re having the meeting and why we want to talk to you folks about which way to go. It’s not a decision to be made lightly.”
Many in attendance expressed opposition toward leasing The River for two reasons. One, to wait until the Cottage Five feasibility is complete, and two, to give a commercial business an opportunity to buy or lease the building, especially if Cottage Five is what the Public Health Department prefers.
Much has changed since The River closed in September of 2022. At that time, Jefferson County Public Health Supervisor Pam Hanna and former commissioner Leonard Wortman toured the 5,000 square-foot establishment with The River building owner Greg Hughes. It appeared to provide the Public Health Department’s need for space and fulfilled Hughes’ desire for the facility to go toward something that would benefit the community.
But when commissioners received a $1.5 million estimate for the renovation and rehabilitation of the building, discussions came to a halt and the Public Health Department started looking elsewhere, leading to the interest in Cottage Five.
Hughes, however, was not ready to give up on a lease agreement with the county. Despite interest in a lease-to-buy agreement from marijuana dispensary Top Shelf Botanicals, Hughes sought out a second opinion from Golden Eagle Construction. This estimate was in the ballpark of $500,000 to $750,000, an estimate Kirsch said “might make it feasible for the county to move forward with a project.”
“That’s why we are starting the process here again,” Kirsch said during the meeting. “We want to discuss the possibility for a short-term lease to at least get some actual bids for the county and see that [The River] is indeed feasible.”
Although the Public Health Department could use more space, Hanna requested at multiple meetings that commissioners wait to decide on The River building until the Cottage Five feasibility study is available. But commissioners – Mullen in particular – didn’t want to lose an opportunity. Mullen said at the meeting that he’s certain The River building would no longer be available by the fall.
“We’ve been holding [Hughes] out a long time, and it’s time to do something or get off the pot,” he said at the meeting.
Some community members present at the meeting didn’t agree with leasing The River building.
“To me it looks like you’re trying to bail [Greg Hughes] out,” said Robert Tomich.
Hughes said that’s certainly not the case.
“Bailing me out? No,” Hughes said during the meeting. “From a personal standpoint, I would rather see the county in The River building rather than the other option. That is why I have basically been putting off something else… If it was simply an economic decision I would have gone with the other offer.”
Following the meeting Hughes told The Monitor that he purchased The River in 2011 and never had a mortgage on it. He added that he’s never been in any kind of position where a “bail out” would be necessary.
During the meeting Kirsch agreed with Hughes, saying this decision is not a matter of trying to “bail him out,” but a matter of making sure the public health department has ample space to provide the best care for the community. Hanna, for example, has a small office in their current Main Street location that used to be the broom closet.
Despite the tight quarters, however, Hanna said she can wait until Cottage Five is available.
“I have grown accustomed to that closet,” she said at the meeting, a comment that received both laughter and applause.
Mullen, however, continued to insist that The River building was too good an opportunity to pass up, especially considering finances for Cottage Five are uncertain.
“We’ve talked to people who think all the money is there. I’m not so sure, which is one of the reasons I’m interested in looking at [The River building] as another alternative,” Mullen said.
“Cottage Five is going to take years no matter what we do, and The River building will be pretty much move-in ready,” Kirsch added.
