CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — City Council will begin holding its regular meetings at the Armory in Yoctangee Park starting Monday, Nov. 9, the city announced, as officials continue weighing a permanent new home for council chambers.
Meetings will move to the building’s second-floor ballroom at 199 Alexander Road, according to a notice the city posted to social media. A fully operational lift is available for residents who need stair-free access, the city said.
Council normally meets the second and fourth Monday of each month at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers on the second floor of City Hall, 26 S. Paint St., according to the city’s website.
The relocation follows months of discussion over where council should permanently meet. Members voted in August to let Mayor Luke Feeney negotiate a lease for new chambers and office space at the Foulke Block, 14 S. Paint St., but postponed that lease resolution at their Sept. 28 meeting without finalizing a deal, according to Scioto Valley Guardian’s previous coverage. Council also held a one-time meeting at Chillicothe High School’s auditorium in September amid the ongoing search for space.
The Armory is a former National Guard facility built in the early 1900s inside Yoctangee Park, which the city now owns. The building has sat largely vacant in recent years, with only a portion previously used by the Ross County Emergency Management Agency. Feeney and his administration, working with Ross County commissioners, have separately secured a $34 million grant for renovations and new construction throughout and surrounding Yoctangee Park, according to the mayor’s office.
The information contained in this story was obtained from the City of Chillicothe.
