A city staff member asked the City Council to authorize extensions for facade work at 1606 Washington Street, a property associated with Richard and Julian Humboldt, saying the owner has been working with contractors and needs more time to finish exterior work.

The staff member told the council the project was originally approved last summer with an optimistic completion date of Nov. 1, 2024 and that the council previously extended the deadline to June 30, 2025. The staff member recommended a new primary completion date of Nov. 30, 2025 and a deadline of Dec. 31, 2025 for submitting financial documentation.

The staff member said contractor quotes presented about a year ago were “just under $25,000,” and that the property owner later approved a contract with a builder that is “just over” $59,000 to support the work. The staff member also said the city has a $10,000 facade grant commitment for the project.

On a related downtown project, the staff member reported that Popstar restaurant group, operator of Popstar Pizza, submitted TIF grant documentation showing more than $130,000 in completed improvements and that the bank is awaiting a lien waiver from the general contractor. The staff member said one remaining payment of about $5,000 is expected to be made this week; once that is paid, the general contractor would issue the waiver, the staff member said.

The staff member said the facade painting and a mural at another nearby project remain incomplete and that the city will likely request an extension for that property as well.

No roll-call vote on the proposed extension for 1606 Washington Street is recorded in the provided transcript; the staff member said they would return with a formal request and asked the council to authorize the extension as indicated.

The staff member also noted the building owner is replacing the roof, an investment separate from the facade grant, and cited other downtown projects completed by the same contractor, including a facade done for White River Real Estate.

Council members asked clarifying questions and the staff member referenced prior review by the Main Street Design Committee and recent visits to the site. The staff member said the owner had made substantial progress in the last month and appeared “within a week” of completing some items when the clerk’s deadline was June 30.

Next steps: staff requested council authorization of the extension (primary completion by Nov. 30, 2025; financial documentation by Dec. 31, 2025) and said they would return with any additional extension requests.