Mayor proposes one-year lease at county health building to relocate city administration during safety-complex construction

The mayor of Cortland on May 19 asked the Cortland City Council to authorize a one-year memorandum of understanding with the Trumbull County Combined Health District to lease space at 4 West Main Street so city administration can relocate while the city builds a new safety services complex.

The proposal matters because the administration says moving now would let the city be “shovel ready” if federal funding for the safety services complex becomes available, but council members pressed for clearer cost details about utilities, renovations and which city funds would cover them.

According to the mayor, “The memorandum of understanding is for one year,” and it includes an exit clause the mayor identified as a “98” out clause. The mayor said the city will not pay a lease fee under the agreement; the city’s obligations would be payment of utilities and exterior maintenance. A city staff member identified as Patty said the city currently pays about $17,000 per year for utilities at the existing building. During the discussion a council member repeated an estimate mentioned in the meeting that renovations to the temporary space could be “probably between $200,000 and $400,000,” though the city had not provided a written estimate at the meeting.

Council members asked several operational questions: whether the police department could continue to operate from the building during construction (the police chief indicated arrangements could be made), whether evidence storage could be handled at another municipality temporarily, and which fund would cover additional utility or renovation costs. The mayor said some work to relocate administration was already planned and that the opportunity to use the health district’s space had arisen proactively; the mayor also said being relocated in advance would position the city to move quickly if federal funds are awarded later in the year.

The record shows the mayor moved the resolution authorizing the memorandum of understanding and that the motion had a second. The transcript records a roll-call sequence later in the meeting but does not contain an unambiguous final tally or a clear, written outcome for this specific resolution in the portions provided; the article therefore does not report a final approval or rejection of the MOU based on the transcript excerpt.

Next steps described in the meeting: the administration said it would return with additional cost information and logistics. The mayor characterized the relocation as temporary and said staff would continue to explore funding and schedule options tied to the timing of potential federal awards.