Last week, the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors entered an agreement with the City of Oakley to demolish the former Contra Costa Sheriff substation.
The City of Oakley is looking at the idea of turning the property into a Library.
Under last weeks action, the Board of Supervisors approved an amount not to exceed $200,000 for the demolition of the former Contra Costa County Sheriff Substation (210 O’Hara Avenue) and transfer the property to the City of Oakley for the term of Sept. 7, 2021 to July 30, 2024.
According to the Staff Report, The Sheriff’s Office relocated their operations from the building at 210 O’Hara Avenue in Oakley, CA to another east county location. The building is vacant and has become an attractive nuisance requiring weekly clean up by Public Works staff. The City of Oakley has expressed interest in potentially using the site for a City library. The cooperative agreement would allow the City of Oakley to demolish the building with the current estimate of the demolition costs being $400,000. Upon completion of the demolition the County would reimburse the City for 50% of the demo costs and transfer the property to the City for use as a library site.
Oakley Mayor Sue Higgins explained while the city can help with grants and support it, this has to be community driven.
“This has to be citizen driven and cannot be council driven,” said Higgins. “I look forward to supporting the citizens in their efforts to bring funding for the much need needed library which will be a huge asset not only the downtown area, but all of Oakley.”
If the City is unable to secure funding for library construction within 36 months of the transfer the property would revert to the County.
3 comments
I like the idea of adding a library, but they shouldn’t demolish the building in order to build one. I don’t see what is wrong with simply repurposing the building into a library. Adding a library would be a great asset for Oakley, but so would preserving historic buildings that give Oakley character. I find that cities and towns that preserve their history are way more charming and exciting than those that just bulldoze it.
I agree don’t demolish what’s there. It was used as a library over 30 years ago, why can’t it be used again?
People in Oakley can read? 🤔
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