Warner Robins Mayor Chuck Shaheen works at his desk last week in his newly renovated office. The extensive work done on the second floor office area came to nearly $30,000.
Renovations at Mayor Chuck Shaheen’s office in City Hall are done, and the bill came to nearly $30,000.
The work had been set in motion before he took office in January, Shaheen said last week.
“The council decided last fall to upgrade the office, and all materials were purchased locally,” he said.
Mark Baker, director of purchasing for the city, said some of the work done, most notably the bathroom area, was the first time any work had been performed since the building opened in the early 1970s.
“The council approved the work in December, but we had to wait until the GBI released the room before starting,” Baker said.
The GBI was conducting an investigation into allegations that former City Clerk Stan Martin and former IT worker Chris Armstrong had attempted to check above the ceiling tiles of former Mayor Donald Walker’s office for firearms or money in October. A Houston County grand jury report concluded there was no criminal action.
After the room was released, things started happening in the mayor’s office. While the work was going on, Baker said, Shaheen used an area in the human resources department to conduct city business.
Walker had been approached before in years past about upgrading the office area but he always declined, Baker said.
“That’s just the way he was,” Baker said. “When he didn’t want something done, you didn’t do it.”
A major expense involved the bathroom, which needed new tiles on the wall, a new shower, commode, vanity, lights, ceiling and heating system, he said. The demolition and retiling work, performed by H & H Carpet, amounted to $7,100; wall re-tiling and preparation, also done by H & H Carpet, was $1,442. A shower door and mirror, from A-1 Screen & Glass Service, came to $475; and a complete toilet set from Ferguson Waterworks totaled $130.
“It was in bad shape, with calcium deposits flaking from the wall,” Baker said. “Everything was 1970s in that room.”
New carpeting for the mayor’s office also came from H & H Carpet and cost $1,999. Electrical work in the office amounted to $3,836, with work done by Jones & Reeves Electrical. New drywall and ceiling tiles, from Defoor Drywall, was $966.
The city’s inspection department personnel recommended Rite-Way Quality Homes for carpentry, paint and stain work, Baker said, and it also supplied the judge’s panels in the mayor’s office. The total cost was $9,833.
Lowe’s supplied a vanity, track lighting, knobs and materials for $697; Kovac Paint furnished the Lenox tan-colored paint for $57; and the Wellston Decorating Center supplied blinds and installation for $318.
“The mayor’s office was pretty much re-done,” Baker said. “There were stains from smoking on the walls, ceiling tiles and grids holding the tiles. The carpet at the back door leading to the balcony was rotted and just came up in little pieces.”
He added the furniture in the office had to be replaced, though he didn’t know how old it was.
“Walker had bought his office chair with his own money, and even had (former mayor) Homer J. Walker’s chair in that office,” he said. “The chairs were returned to the family.”
New furniture for the office (executive chair, desk, credenza and hutch) came from Battco Office Furniture at a total of $3,018. New locks for the mayor’s desk amounted to $145 from All Secure.
An employees lounge was expanded after Shaheen suggested moving a wall back six feet so the room could be accessed without going through the mayor’s office, Baker said. Two chairs and a five-piece dinette set from Home Décor came to $919.
“The work went slower than I expected, but that’s about par for construction,” he said. “It was also fairly inexpensive, given the amount of work done.”
Shaheen invited the public to look at the new office back in February before a city council meeting.
“It’s the people’s office, and that’s the reason he invited people to walk around and look at it back in February,” City Clerk Alton Mattox said last week. “It was a way of saying, ‘See, here’s how the money was spent.’”
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