Architectural plans are being drafted for a new potential piece at the Missouri State Penitentiary redevelopment site.

At Monday night's Jefferson City Council meeting, council members will hear about the potential development of a nearly $20 million facility on the MSP grounds

The plan for constructing a three-story, 50,000 square-foot building involves a collaboration between the Missouri Primary Care Association and Missouri Behavioral Health Council to provide space for offices, technical training and a conference center.

"We have two associations that are like-minded, and we really felt that we could be better together," said Joe Pierle, executive director of the Missouri Primary Care Association.

The council will take up a resolution that, if approved, could authorize city staff to continue negotiating a deal involving Missouri Primary Care Association, Missouri Behavioral Health Council and the city, which gained ownership of 32 acres of land in 2018 where the historic prison is located.

Originally decommissioned as a state prison in 2004, the grounds of MSP were sought by the city for redevelopment into a hotel, conference center, parking facilities as well as other multi-use facilities. In May, state lawmakers approved a project for building a new state laboratory at MSP -- an investment totaled to be worth $76.8 million.

The Missouri Primary Care Association is a nonprofit organization seeking to provide affordable and quality health care, while the Missouri Behavioral Health Council, oversees support for community mental health centers and substance use treatment providers in the state.

To pay for the building, deemed the Center for Excellence, the two associations applied for $12 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and would also use combined funds of up to $8 million. Pierle said the proposal for the new facility has been under development for around two years. The associations have worked on design plans with Arcturis, a St. Louis architectural firm.

"Architectural plans are being finalized, and we're making good progress, and we think that this resolution is just that next step to putting us on the path to getting this done," Pierle said.

Pierle said the design of the facility is proposed as a steel-framed structure, with light- colored brick masonry, similar in color to its historical structures nearby.

The city anticipates requiring up to $350,000 in total assessment from two associations to pay for the purchase or long-term lease of the land, according to Monday's proposed resolution. City Attorney Ryan Moehlman said the money may help pay for structural elements that go along with the building, such as roads, sidewalks, streetlights and landscaping.

"What we're looking for is an assessment likely through some sort of tax incentive tool like a community improvement district in order to help pay for infrastructure that the building will use," Moehlman said.

Also, among the list of bills to be introduced at the meeting Monday are plans for repairing city streets, which include an annual street surface program that was endorsed in May by the Public Works and Planning Committee. The overlay work, if approved, will cost the city $831,178. Streets that were previously overlayed will get a seal coat, costing the city, if approved, $93,989.

Another bill to be introduced deals with the plans for a new AutoZone on the east side of town. The store at 839 Eastland Drive, near Gerbes, is expected to be around 7,400 square feet and would add an additional lot to the one that already exists on site. The Planning and Zoning Commission approved the plans last month, sending it on to the council for its approval.

Print Headline: $20M office building proposed at MSP redevelopment site

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