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Resident urges Clute council to fix City Hall roof, warns of higher costs if delayed
Summary
Local resident Randy Smith urged the Clute City Council to prioritize repairs to City Hall’s leaking roof, saying ongoing water intrusion and mold risk could lead to a costly rebuild if not addressed promptly.
Randy Smith, a longtime Clute resident, asked the City Council on Thursday to put repairs to City Hall’s roof on an agenda and take immediate action, saying repeated leaks are causing mold and risk of structural loss.
Smith said he has “lived in Clute my whole life” and described visible water dripping inside City Hall during storms. “The more you let it go, the worse it gets,” he said, warning that delaying repairs could force the city “to tear this City Hall down” and rebuild at far greater expense.
Smith told council he had requested an informal estimate from a metal-building contractor who gave a “roundabout” figure of about $308,000, and that another contact suggested a range near $290,000 to $320,000. He said the city should consider interim repairs while insurance and potential litigation are resolved: “If you had a tree limb fall through your house ... you at least kind of cover it up. And I think that's what we need to be doing here.”
Council members responded that the issue is already on the council’s agenda for further consideration that night. No formal motion to allocate funds or hire contractors was taken during the public-comment exchange; Smith’s remarks were delivered during the citizens/visitors comments portion of the meeting.
The citizen’s comments came amid other hurricane-related facility matters on the agenda: the council later approved a task order to hire an engineering firm to perform structural assessments of City Hall and other facilities to document damage for insurance and FEMA cost-recovery. That item will produce formal engineering findings that could determine whether short-term repairs or larger remediation are required.
Smith concluded by asking the council to prioritize repairs to protect the building and avoid a multimillion-dollar replacement. Council members acknowledged the concern and noted staff would follow up under the agenda item addressing facility damage.
Looking ahead, the council moved later in the meeting to authorize structural assessments (see separate article), which staff said are required to pursue mitigation and reimbursement options with FEMA and insurers.
