Sullivan completes new city hall

The building at 110 North Main Street previously served as a Rural Electric Membership Cooperative office and was also once the home of the Southwest School Corp. and the Sullivan Daily Times.

The city said Wednesday it acquired the property in late 2020 at a Sheriff’s sale for $86,000 after determining that building a new city hall from scratch would be too cost prohibitive.

The cost for a new construction would have been $8 million, but the city was able to complete the renovation effort for just $1.8 million, which included local income tax dollars.

The new facility houses the mayor’s and clerk treasurer’s offices, as well as the city’s building commissioner, public works and community development departments.

The building will also be home to new city council chambers. It features a lobby area for residents, a fitness area for city employees and their families, and a designated drive-thru for individuals to use when paying bills.

The old city hall was located in a former IGA grocery store building, which the city began using in 1984 originally as a temporary space following a fire that damaged the historic city hall the year prior.

“The wonderful folks of Sullivan deserve a facility that is not only decades in the making, but one they can be very proud of,” Sullivan Mayor Clint Lamb said in a news release. “The old grocery store did not function well as a city hall or a fire station for that matter. This move allows more space, provides added convenience for citizens when visiting and ensures that our employees understand that taking time to care is more than just a motto.”  

Sullivan is located about 30 minutes south of Terre Haute and about 95 miles southwest of Indianapolis.

The city received a total of about $4 million in READI grants through the Wabash River RDA’s $20 million allocation. In addition to the Central Plaza project, the funding is supporting a new civic center, new city pool, and new housing, including 40 townhomes, duplexes and single-family homes.

Lamb told Inside INdiana Business last month the funding is a game-changer for communities like his.

“You’re talking about communities for many, many years that have been told that they’ve been forgotten or they’ve been told that they’ve been left behind,” said Lamb. “One of the biggest challenges isn’t budgeting. It’s not state funding formulas or fighting with the legislature. It is the apathetic nature of a lot of these rural communities, and to see this type of investment, it’s unheard of.”

The city plans to hold an official dedication ceremony for the new city hall this spring. Plans for the former city hall location at 32 North Court Street will be revealed at a later date.