Arnold officials debate what to do with 'extra space' in city hall — including whether there is any

Leasing space in Arnold City Hall to outside parties has emerged as a bit of an issue for two city officials.

Mayor Joseph Bia and Councilman George Hawdon are on opposite sides on just how much space the city may need in the building and how much it should lease to other parties.

“There is a lot of contention over what space needs to be used at city hall,” Bia said.

The matter came up Tuesday when Hawdon proposed a 45-day notice of intention to terminate the lease of Aspol, a company that leases space on the first floor.

The company makes rubberized asphalt and plans to open a manufacturing plant in the city.

Bia said about 18 months ago the company leased two rooms, a small office and a conference room, in city hall that had been vacant. Overall, he said that amounts to about 225 square feet of space; Aspol pays the city $500 a month.

“They told us we can use that conference room whenever we want,” Bia said. “It (lease termination) needs to be discussed a little bit further before we put people out on the street.”

Hawdon is concerned about a couple of things. One is that the city may need that space now that it is taking over the billing and collection of some $2 million in sewage and garbage fees from Pennsylvania Municipal Services, which had done the work for years on a contract basis.

“We may need it,” he said. “What I want is the flexibility to use it because we may need it to expand.”

He said a second thing is the current lease agreement with Aspol.

“Certain things are in it, as I read it, that seem to limit us and automatically renew the lease,” Hawdon said.

Yet another reason is that the lease arrangement more or less puts the city in competition with local landlords who have commercial space available.

“I’m not sure the city should be in the commercial real estate business,” Hawdon said.

Hawdon brought the 45-day notice to the floor for a vote but it died when no other council members provided a second to the motion.

He and Bia said council will review the lease agreement and discuss it further. Bia said if there is no further action, the lease will come up for renewal in April.