Durango City Council told staff members Tuesday to keep researching whether the city could use the recently vacated, 81,380-square-foot FIS Worldpay building near the Durango Mall.
FIS Worldpay announced it was closing the building, the largest office space in Durango, in November after shifting 250 employees to remote-work status. Durango officials suggested it could be an opportunity for development or future city facilities during a City Council meeting Tuesday.
“I would like to suggest that it is of general interest to any of us,” said Mayor Dean Brookie. “It has significant impact in our community ... whether we own it or not. We, as the city, need to understand what is transpiring.”
FIS Worldpay was originally Mercury Payment Systems, a consumer payment-processing company that started in Durango.
Mercury invested $40 million in the land and the building, which includes a small medical clinic, a fitness center with locker rooms, a cafe and a LEED silver designation for environmental practices.
The building has about 60,000 square feet of office space excluding the building’s lobby, common spaces and atrium. The largest of Durango employers with office space needs typically require no more than about 4,000 square feet, according to estimates from The Wells Group.
City councilors were interested in the possibilities related to the empty building, but they split over the question at hand Tuesday: whether to discuss their interests in public or private.
Generally, council discussions happen in the open as required by law, but it can under certain legal circumstances hold an executive session that is closed to the public.
City Manager José Madrigal listed the FIS Worldpay discussion as an executive session Tuesday, which drew pushback from those who did not see the justification.
City staff members said no specific deal is on the table. Instead, staff members were looking for general direction from city councilors about their interest in the building.
“This item was placed on the agenda because I’m seeking direction,” Madrigal said. “As the city manager, I’ve had people calling in and asking about offers.”
He was reluctant to share some details of those calls publicly, like the names of developers, in case it risked compromising a real estate deal.
When voting whether to go into executive session, two councilors, Brookie and Chris Bettin, voted against the idea. Melissa Youssef, Barbara Noseworthy and Kim Baxter voted for the session. But without two-thirds of a quorum, the motion fails, meaning four or more of the five councilors needed to vote to go into the closed hearing.
City Council supported continuing its discussions in a special session or study session as soon as possible.
Brookie and Bettin recommended city staff members do more research to see if acquiring the building would align with city needs.
“None of you (councilors) are experts at any of this. They are,” Bettin said, referring to staff members. “They need to study it and give us good information for us to be able to have that session.”
Brookie said he had an “immense interest” in the building and suggested the city could help with business recruitment efforts or future city use.
Baxter and Noseworthy said going into an executive session for the real estate discussion was not unreasonable or outside standard procedures.
“None of us know what we don’t know,” Noseworthy said, supporting the session. “I think we’re missing an opportunity to get information from José.”
smullane@durangoherald.com
