Though it will receive little attention in deliberations over the city and county buildings issue, two decisions from the mid-1990s played pivotal roles in city officials’ determination to buy and use the Renaissance Square building at 200 E. Berry St.

Both, not coincidentally, are based in the same motivation many Americans hold: They would rather own their homes than rent, investing in a property rather than simply using it.

In 1994, the police department moved into the former Phelps Dodge office building on Creighton Avenue, partly to consolidate various police offices then spread between Southgate shopping center, the City-County Building and a building on Murray Street that now houses the fire department offices. Another reason was a desire of Mayor Paul Helmke and his public safety director, Payne Brown, to maintain a big-time police presence in the heart of an area with a high rate of violent crime.

The city has paid about $225,000 a year to rent the building from the McMillen Foundation, which runs the Wildcat youth sports league. The aging building is inadequate for the department, which has added about 100 officers since the move. And the city has estimated that necessary renovations to bring it up to standards would cost $17 million.

Also in the mid-1990s, the Helmke administration approved changing the terms of the financing for maintenance of the county government-owned City-County Building. The city had paid the county a percentage of total maintenance costs based on the percentage of space the city used. Under the new terms, the city began paying a set amount per square foot, with the price increasing along with the consumer price index. This subtly changed the agreement from sharing the costs to a clear landlord-tenant relationship, and the city – which now pays about $1.2 million a year in rent to the county – probably did not get the better end of the deal.

Mayor Tom Henry – like countless tenants who have rented apartments and houses – has referred to paying rent with nothing to show for it. His predecessor, Graham Richard, also was frustrated with the city’s inability to have more control over the maintenance and appearance of the City-County Building.

Downtown emphasis

Perhaps it is also no coincidence that Henry and Richard, both Democrats, aren’t happy living under moves made by Helmke, a Republican. But city government’s emphasis has changed.

When city police moved to Creighton Avenue, boosting and protecting the Hanna-Creighton department was a major goal. Now, the neighborhood has improved, with development around the intersection of those streets, plus the promising – but lagging – Renaissance Pointe development (no relation to Renaissance Square) behind the police station.

Now, the city’s emphasis is largely on downtown development. A truly central location for police – close to the courthouse, prosecutor’s office and jail – makes sense. Moreover, officials aren’t happy about the prospect of the 200 E. Berry building – former home to Lincoln National Corp. – sitting empty for much longer.