Check out these six city of Shelby projects that are in the works

The city of Shelby is moving forward with several projects this year that include roads, trails and historic buildings.

Check out this list of six projects recently discussed at the city council meeting:

Former Shelby Police Department

The building on South Lafayette Street, which housed Shelby Police and the city’s 911 call center for many years, has been vacant since the new police department opened on West Warren Street in 2018. City Manager Rick Howell said for a number of years the plan has been to convert it into office space for the city's planning and zoning department, code enforcement, building inspections and human resources. He said Upland Architects have been retained and the city is ready to bring the project to bid. They expect to have those bids back in six weeks or so after which, bids will be brought back before City Council for review.

Webbley Mansion

The historic mansion on South Washington Street has been slowly falling into a state of disrepair and was listed for sale after going into foreclosure in 2023. Recently, the city received a state grant of nearly $4 million for the purchase and restoration of the house, which was the former home of N.C. Governor O. Max Gardner.

City Council voted Monday on a resolution that established a capital project budget.

"That's your first step moving forward with the project.," Howell said "We do not have authorization to spend funds yet and probably will not for at least a couple of weeks."

He said the city has not yet received the final grant document but anticipate that in the next couple of weeks.

Howell said once that final document is received, there will be a discussion with City Council on how to proceed with the acquisition of the house.

County Road Home

In 2019, City Council voted to close the segment of County Road Home connecting the frontage road off U.S. 74 near the State Employee Credit Union and Kings Road at the request of the owner with the intention of eventually creating a new road in the future. The city said the new road will create a better traffic pattern for the Magnolia Plantation subdivision.

Construction of the new County Road segment connecting the frontage road and Kings Road will begin in the next couple of months.

"We hope it will be sooner," Howell said. "There is some electric relocation work that has to take place before that."

He said the city is waiting on Duke Energy to relocate electric poles before the contractor can start work.

Charles Hotel

The historic hotel on Warren Street is slated to be developed into an upscale boutique hotel.

Deadline for proposals from potential developers for the hotel project were due Friday, March 8, according to Howell.

He said once proposals are received, staff will develop recommendations and then review the proposals with City Council before moving forward with the selection.

Once completed, the hotel will potentially have 38 hotel rooms with the first floor dedicated to the lobby, a food and beverage program and additional retail space. The second and third floors would each have 18 rooms and one guest suite.

Carolina Harmony Trail

The city has recently submitted an application for a $25 million RAISE grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation for the fifth year in a row and if the city is awarded the grant, it will cover the cost of the remainder of the Carolina Harmony Trail. Once completed, the rail trail will run from Sunset Cemetery in Shelby all the way to the South Carolina state line near Earl.

Howell said the project has been highly recommended, and the city is hopeful this year, they will be the recipient of the grant.

In the meantime, he said TGS Engineering is designing the remainder of the first phase of the trail which runs from Marion Street to Dekalb Street with the exclusion of the Depot Park near Gardner and Graham streets.

Howell said this section is tentatively scheduled to go out to bid late this year.

The Depot Park plans are also moving forward and Destination by Design is working on the engineering and architectural design for the renovation of the old depot and construction of the park, which will potentially include a splash pad, playground, stage and restaurant. According to the city, the design is expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter with bids issued in March and a potential construction start this summer.

Howell said the bidding process is slightly behind because the city had to address state Historic Preservation requirements involving the roof of the building.

City Hall renovations

After a water line recently broke in the ceiling of City Hall causing some slight flooding in council chambers, the city decided to use the time to determine what upgrades and renovations need to be completed. Howell said he anticipates the plan will include replacing the carpet, renovating the bathrooms so they are ADA compliant, improving lighting and updating technology, including a new sound system and video display system.

"We decided while we were out of the building, we might as well do initial assessment what needs to be done in that building," Howell said.

City Council meetings are being held at the Don Gibson Theatre at 318 S. Washington St. in the interim.

This article originally appeared on The Shelby Star: Check out these six city of Shelby projects that are in the works