Ogden mulls $3.6M acquisition of Forest Service building — an art deco structure built in 1934

OGDEN — The U.S. government is selling off the iconic art deco structure that previously housed the U.S. Forest Service office in Ogden, and city leaders are considering acquiring the building.

“Basically the proposal is to buy it so that we can control the development,” said Janene Eller-Smith, who manages the Ogden City Council office.

The four-story building at 507 25th St., just east of Ogden’s main downtown area, ranks with Ogden High School and the Ogden Municipal Building as key examples of the art deco projects of Ogden architects Leslie Hodgson and Myrl McClenahan. If it’s sold, say, to an outstate buyer, Eller-Smith said, proponents of acquiring the building fear it will remain vacant at least in the near term, falling into disrepair.

The proposed $3.6 million acquisition has been focus of two Ogden City Council work sessions, and the plans come up for formal consideration by city officials next Tuesday. More specifically, officials will be considering an expenditure of $600,000 — $360,000 in earnest money for the federal government toward the purchase of the building and $240,000 to cover maintenance of the building in the next year.

Representatives of Mayor Ben Nadolski didn’t respond to queries seeking comment, but his administration is promoting the purchase of the building. The city would likely sell private placement bonds to cover the purchase price if officials opt to acquire it, according to Eller-Smith.

“Because this is such an important building, our team is recommending acquisition as the best route to ensure a good outcome for this building,” Sara Meess, manager of the Ogden Business Development Division, said at a Nov. 12 Ogden City Council Work Session.

Meess said city officials’ vision is to acquire the building — which would need an estimated $13.3 million to $22.5 million in renovations, seismic upgrades and parking lot development — and sell it to a developer. To that end, the city sought out redevelopment proposals from the private sector, envisioning commercial or a mix of commercial and residential development. City staffers will have a recommendation on which to consider at Tuesday’s meeting, and Meess suggested tax-increment financing as a means to assist with redevelopment costs.

The building, completed in 1934, was a project of the Great Depression-era Works Progress Administration and built for the U.S. Forest Service. The Forest Service, though, moved out of the building two years ago, setting the stage for the U.S. government plans to sell it. Meess, meantime, stressed the need for action. “We definitely understand that the longer the building is vacant, the greater the risk is that it could be subject to vandalism or deterioration,” she said.

Eller-Smith said City Council members are split, some favoring the acquisition, others thinking the private sector could manage redevelopment on its own. “I think it’s going to be a close vote,” she said.

Sabrina Lee, president of the Weber County Heritage Foundation, favors acquisition of the building by the city, also concerned the structure would fall into disrepair in private hands. It’s on the National Register of Historic Places, she said, and is a unique local example of the art deco style, along with two other Hodgson and McClenahan projects — Ogden High School, built in 1937, and the Ogden Municipal Building, completed in 1938.

The architects’ many buildings in Ogden are “definitely landmarks in the city,” Lee said. “They need to be saved and taken care of.”