Westminster plans to purchase the BB&T Building at 45 W. Main St. for $1.6 million to relocate its administrative offices.
The city has been leasing space at 56 W. Main St., where the offices are currently located, for many years. Robert Wack, president of the Westminster Common Council, said that no longer paying rent for the property will be good financially.
“No. 1, it’s going to save the city a lot of money,” he said. “We will be owning the building that we work in.”
Mayor Joe Dominick is quoted in a release from the Office of the City Administrator as saying: “I am pleased that the City and BB&T Bank were able to reach agreement on the City’s acquisition of this important anchor site in Westminster’s downtown. Purchasing the bank property is in keeping with the City’s goal to be a good steward of public funds and will save Westminster taxpayers money in the long-run.”
Wack said the BB&T building is larger than the current administrative space and will let the administration “better organize city operation to make it more efficient.”
During the council meeting on Monday, Nov. 13, the Westminster Common Council is scheduled to formally authorize Dominick to execute a purchase agreement for the property.
The building opened as the main branch of the Carroll County Bank & Trust Co. in September 1964 and has undergone various renovations over the years. The building became the property of BB&T in 1999 when Carroll County Bank was purchased by BB&T.
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According to the release, closing on the property is tentatively scheduled for March 2018. According to the release, the city will then renovate the building in order to bring it up to the standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act and other code requirements, City Administrator Barbara B. Matthews said.
“Buying a building like that is a long, complicated process,” Wack said.
Now that a price was negotiated, inspection and other due diligence processes will have to be completed before the sale is finalized.
“We are delighted the City of Westminster is buying this building and look forward to continuing our excellent working relationship with the City’s leaders,” said Chris Ruppert, BB&T market president, in the release. “BB&T has been a pillar of downtown for decades and remains committed to Westminster and its future economic prosperity.”
Wack said he is pleased that the building will continue to be a center of local activity on Main Street.
“I’m grateful to BB&T for their spirit of cooperation through the negotiation process,” Wack said in the release.