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Mercer alumni seek memorabilia as council weighs costly community center repairs
Summary
At the Jan. 16 meeting, Mercer residents and alumni requested access to the community center to retrieve class photos and trophies ahead of a July 11 reunion while council members reviewed estimates — including a roof starting at about $250,000 — and DEQ-mandated mold remediation that could increase repair costs.
Charlene Lelm, representing the Mercer School Alumni, asked the city council on Jan. 16 to permit removal of wall-mounted class photos and trophies from the community center for an all-class reunion scheduled for July 11, 2025. Lelm said the alumni are still exploring logistics and handed out material on Senate Bill 20-97, an endowment program for towns under 1,000 residents that she said could help with grant funding.
Mayor Lori Stute said she had spoken with city attorney Jim Wilson, who is drafting a liability waiver; under the proposed process, "it needs to be a city council member to go into the community center and bring items out of the building then you can sign the waiver to release the item for liability reasons," Stute said. The council did not take a final vote on the request at the meeting.
Erika Lorenz said replacing the roof would be the first priority if the city moves forward with repairs. "Randy Zinke got estimates last winter and the minimum was $250,000.00 starting and it went up from there," Lorenz said. According to a testing company report and the Department of Environmental Quality, mold contamination requires removal of affected building materials and treatment extending two feet beyond contaminated areas; the building would then need to be brought up to current code, including updates to electrical and plumbing and the addition of a sprinkler system if required to meet code.
The council did not approve funding or set a timeline for repairs during the meeting. Lelm suggested that an endowment or grant program such as Senate Bill 20-97 could be explored to help cover costs, but no commitment to apply for grants was recorded.
