Linn County offers to buy Wheelhouse office complex

ALBANY — At their Tuesday morning meeting, Linn County Commissioners Roger Nyquist, Sherrie Sprenger and Will Tucker approved a conditional purchase and sale agreement for the Wheelhouse office building at 421 NE Water Ave. in Albany.

The sale price is approximately $6.25 million.

Commissioner Tucker participated telephonically.

Linn County Administrative Officer Darrin Lane said Tuesday’s agreement will begin the county’s due diligence phase of the project. If no issues are found, the subject will come back before the commissioners for final approval and finalizing the purchase.  

“We can get this building for one-third to one-fifth the cost of a courthouse addition,” Lane said. “It will yield a significant amount of space.”

The Wheelhouse is owned by Ohanamula LLC, whose principals are Dave and Janet Johnson of Corvallis.

Construction of the approximately 25,000-square-foot office building began in 2008. The building cost $7 million to build and opened in 2010. It has housed a variety of businesses and for a time, also rented out space for special events.

The complex includes 84 on-site parking spaces and the building was designed with energy efficiency in mind. It is fully ADA compliant. The facility was built on the site of the former Buzzsaw Restaurant, next to the Willamette River.

“This acquisition, if ultimately successful, represents a substantial value to the taxpayers of Linn County,” Board Chairman Roger Nyquist said. “It would cost us at least three times the purchase price to build a similar structure. I hope that this property is a key component in the solution to our ongoing court security challenges, while we attempt to give the best service possible to the general public.”

Commissioners Sprenger and Tucker both agreed.

“I didn’t realize until I became a commissioner, how cramped we are in the courthouse,” Commissioner Sprenger said. “The District Attorney’s Office is stuffed and we didn’t have space for our HR (Human Resources) Department. I’m not advocating which departments should move and we need to be careful about that conversation. Purchasing this building is much cheaper than adding onto the courthouse. This is a great idea.”

Commissioner Tucker called the project “a very smart investment. It makes sense for the citizens of Linn County and the state courts.”

The purchase will free up space in the courthouse, although it is too soon to know which offices or departments may move. It will also solve an issue the commissioners have worked on for several years, providing increased security measures — such as metal detectors — especially for the third-floor Linn County District Courtrooms, while keeping other areas as barrier free to the general public as possible.

The commissioners had researched building a new addition that would provide space for the District Attorney’s Office and secure access to the courts, but that project is estimated to cost about $30 million. The State of Oregon would provide up to $15 million, but only for a new courthouse, not an addition.

Linn County will use ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funds for the building’s purchase and any remodeling to meet county needs.

Media contact: Alex Paul, Linn County Communications Officer, 541-967-3825 or email apaul@co.linn.or.us.