Veterans Memorial Building enters final renovation phase

CEDAR RAPIDS - Renovation of the flood-damaged Veterans Memorial Building, the city's former City Hall on May's Island, is pushing ahead.

The City Council on Tuesday agreed to proceed with bids on the third phase of the building's three-phase renovation project.

About 40 percent of work is complete on the building's Second Avenue tower, about 30 percent is done on the First Avenue tower and the third phase, estimated to cost about $4.5 million, will renovate the auditorium and basement armory between the two towers, Mike Jager, Veterans Memorial Commission director, said Tuesday.

He said the entire project is slated for completion in the summer of 2013.

The city's Veterans Memorial Commission intends to use more of the building than in the past for veterans-related programs and services while leasing out some of the building's space. The city of Cedar Rapids also intends to use some space, including the former fourth-floor council chambers, for meetings of city commissions and boards.

The Vets Building renovation is on budget, Jager said. He noted that the project is proceeding with $15.3 million in funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, $3.1 million in state I-JOBS funds and $100,000 in state Jumpstart funds for the building's boiler system.

City Hall is now in a new home, down the block in the renovated former federal courthouse at 101 First St. SE.