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Parking more important than new office complex, state building chief says Tuesday, Feb 5, 2008 By Rob Moritz Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - Additional parking for state Capitol employees and visitors is a bigger priority than a new building for state agencies now paying rent elsewhere in Pulaski County, the state building director told lawmakers Monday. Anne Laidlaw, director of the Arkansas Building Authority, told the House and Senate Committees on State Agencies and Governmental Affairs that a 2,000-space parking deck would meet the current parking need and that such a facility would cost about $26 million. "Our need ... No. 1, is for parking in the Capitol Mall," Laidlaw said, to accommodate those among the 3,293 state employees who work in or around the state Capitol who miss out on the 2,254 parking spaces in the area. The two committees met Monday to discuss the lack of space for state offices on the state Capitol complex, and the numerous agencies that lease space in downtown Little Rock. Sen. Steve Faris, D-Malvern, chairman of the Senate committee, discussed the possibility of constructing a new multi-agency office complex on the Capitol grounds. He then briefed the two committees on efforts in the past 20 years to build what was referred to as Big Mac II on the Capitol Mall. Construction costs for Big Mac II was estimated at $50 million in 1991, including a proposed 2,200-space parking deck. The plan probably would cost about $165 million today, Faris said. Laidlaw briefed lawmakers on the location of various state agencies on the state Capitol campus and those located in state-owned or rented space elsewhere in the city. She said the state spends about $13 million annually to rent about 1.5 million square feet of office space. "I think that in the future we need to be looking at putting this money back to work in a sensible, fiscally responsible way for the people of Arkansas, so they can have a complex where government is centralized and a complex that they are proud of their tax dollars paying for it," Faris said. He suggested focusing on a plan to build in phases to accommodate government growth, and said the Building Authority should have some kind of proposal ready by the state budget hearings in October. After the meeting, Laidlaw the next step would be to meet with representatives from the various agencies located in the four buildings on the western side of the state Capitol, then with representatives of agencies that rent space in other areas of the city. During the meeting, Rep. Randy Stewart, D-Kirby, suggested paving over the grassy Capitol Mall, where state employees frequently have lunch at picnic tables now located that, and using that for about 150 additional parking spaces. "That would be a quick term fix," Stewart said. Faris cautioned lawmakers about paving green space around the Capitol. "I'm not opposed to what you are saying, but before we look at doing away with what little green space we have it might be prudent to at least look at decking some of the existing parking areas," Faris said. "I agree with you that parking back there is a problem." |
