Earlier this month, the Jefferson City Council approved the purchase of their third downtown building.

The Council approved an agreement with the Bank of the West in California to purchase the building at 200 East State Street for $100. The City already owns 111 East Lincoln Way and 205 North Wilson Avenue. One of the more critical repairs to the building is replacing the roof, which is what City Administrator Mike Palmer said was a major reason why the City wanted to move quickly on purchasing the property.

“What we want to do is have a good sturdy, long-lasting roof so when we turn it over to somebody else that we know that they’re going to get at least 20 years out of this roof and wanted the new owners to have a very good product and something frankly the City could be very proud of turning over.”

Palmer points out that the roof is at a point where if it isn’t replaced soon, it could cause major interior damage, like the situation with the former Linda’s Fashion building at 111 East Lincoln Way. However, Palmer says the City is only looking to temporarily step in to make repairs and improvements to a downtown building and then turn around and sell it to a potential owner.

There is no timetable set, but Palmer hopes to have the building ready to take purchase proposals by the end of this summer.