Elizabeth City officials opted last week not to pursue building new rest-room facilities and making other improvements to City Hall right now.

At the urging of Mayor Roger McLean, city staff outlined a 2009 proposal to create a handicapped-accessible rest-room on the second floor of the Gardner Municipal Building and cover the customer service area to allow for additional space on the second floor.

The city had received a low bid of $63,165 from Edward Winslow for the work — a bid Winslow told city officials he would still honor.

But a motion by Councilman Johnnie Walton to award the contract to Winslow, with funds coming from the $267,000 balance in a budget line item for building improvements, failed to get a second.

Councilwoman Lena Hill-Lawrence said things need to be planned and not done haphazardly. If the project is necessary it should be put in next year’s budget, she said.

Councilman Tony Stimatz said council would need at least to see a floor plan before making a decision. He said he’s not sure what covering the customer service area would mean for the building’s heating and cooling system.

Councilwoman Betty Meggs said the building needs improvements but added she doesn’t feel comfortable spending the money on something she’s not sure of, especially when there are other things the city needs to do.

Councilman Rickey King, who pointed out he serves on the Customer Service Task Force, said privacy is needed downstairs in the customer service area and the city should handle that before doing anything upstairs.

Councilwoman Anita Hummer agreed there are “too many unknowns” to proceed with the project right now.

But Walton mentioned the human resources department’s move to the third floor of the A.P. Midgette Building, saying the human resources area is much better now. He said this project could accomplish something similar.

McLean said City Hall needs a bathroom upstairs that’s accessible for wheelchairs. He said the improvements shouldn’t supplant anything else, but he would like to see a plan that addresses all the concerns.

The upstairs bathroom doesn’t reflect well on the city, McLean said.

Hill-Lawrence said she wasn’t saying the bathroom upgrade isn’t a good thing, but just that it should be planned and budgeted.

McLean agreed the city will need to renovate the first floor customer service area as well.

The Customer Service Task Force is expected to bring recommendations to City Council next month.

Contact Reggie Ponder at rponder@dailyadvance.com