Mount Juliet approves $63,000 budget amendment and hires Architect Workshop for city-hall space-needs study

The Mount Juliet Board of Commissioners approved a budget amendment to appropriate funds and authorized a professional services agreement with Architect Workshop for a space-needs study for a proposed city hall.

The commission amended the contract amount from $61,000 to $63,000 to include $2,000 in reimbursable expenses and changed the budget line from the police department to the city manager’s budget. The amendment passed and 13 e (the budget amendment) carried. The board then adopted 13 f, a resolution authorizing the mayor to sign a professional services agreement with Architect Workshop for the study.

Commissioners asked several procedural and timing questions before approving the contract. Commissioner Malelli expressed concern about starting the assessment before budget season concluded, stating she preferred the study begin after the new budget is adopted so department heads can focus on their budget submissions. Commissioner Malelli said: “I feel like the assessment shouldn't start until after the budget's passed.” City Manager Kenny Martin said the commission could choose to start the process sooner or delay it until after the budget passes; he noted the funding could come from cash reserves or be budgeted next year.

Architect James Cannon of Architect Workshop described the firm’s planned approach to the study: two meetings with staff and commissioners for interviews and consensus building, a work session with the commission, visits to nearby city halls as case studies, a room-by-room square-footage spreadsheet presented graphically, adjacency diagrams and optional 3-D views to evaluate options. Cannon said the study is intended to define “what you need” in terms of square footage, site and parking so the city can test potential sites and refine exterior design after internal program needs are established.

Commissioners also raised scheduling concerns: one commissioner said the consultant’s assumption of two concurrent days of meetings could be difficult to schedule given commissioners’ travel schedules and asked for more flexibility. Cannon replied that the firm understands commissioners’ scheduling constraints and will consolidate meetings where possible and coordinate a work session format to gather unified input.

Why it matters: The space-needs study will define functional requirements, room sizes and adjacencies for a proposed city hall and inform site selection, cost estimates and future design work. The budget amendment of $63,000 funds the initial professional-services phase.

Next steps: Architect Workshop will schedule staff interviews, a work session with the commission and case-study visits. The consultant will produce a spreadsheet of rooms and square footage, graphic diagrams of adjacencies and potential 3-D representations. The commission may direct the consultant to begin work immediately or delay start until after the final budget is adopted.