Council tables resolution to solicit bids for sale of City Hall after lengthy debate

Williamsport City Council on June 25 debated whether to authorize the solicitation of bids for the sale of the city’s vacant City Hall building and ultimately voted 4–2 to table the resolution for two weeks.

Councilman Jonah Milliken, the sponsor, told the council the vote before them would authorize only the solicitation of bids — “We’re not voting on accepting bids. We’re voting on opening the door to receive and review bids,” he said — and said selling the building could be done “responsibly” with deed restrictions to protect the exterior and historic character.

But several public speakers and council members pressed for more time and clearer procurement rules. Bruce Hoffman, who said he could not review the packet until the afternoon of the meeting, identified what he described as factual errors in the documents (founding dates, National Register listing date and building square footage) and urged the council to table the matter for two weeks to correct inaccuracies and allow citizen input. “For all these reasons I listed, I strongly urge that you table this for 2 weeks to correct these things, inaccuracies,” Hoffman said.

Councilwoman Liz Meeley said she favored keeping the RFP broad but asked for a clear evaluation framework and public participation in the review process. “I would like to see the criteria that we are using before I make a choice about it,” she said, adding that financial offer should not be the only factor in evaluating proposals for a building the city wants to steward long term.

Mayor Slaughter and other council members emphasized both the city’s budgetary pressure and the need to secure a quality steward for the property. Milliken noted the budget includes a $560,000 line for the City Hall sale; he said soliciting bids would let the city assess options but would not obligate it to accept any offer.

After discussion, President Beiter moved to table the resolution and the motion passed 4–2. Council members who voted to table said they wanted the administration to return with a revised solicitation that corrects factual errors, sets out evaluation criteria or scoring, and identifies how citizen input will be incorporated. Members who opposed tabling warned that too many restrictions might deter potential developers and leave the building vacant and deteriorating.

Next steps: Council directed staff to revise the solicitation materials and to return for further action at the next regular meeting; the council’s next scheduled meeting is July 9, 2026.