Pottsville Mayor James T. Muldowney said Monday he’s going to give his State of the City address from the former Pottsville Club.
“We’re close to selling it, as close as we’ve ever been,” Muldowney said Monday morning at the former club at 201 S. 26th St.
“We want to build some excitement around the pending sale,” City Administrator Thomas A. Palamar said on site Monday.
The Pottsville Club closed Oct. 8, 2013, after 125 years in business. In February 2014, Miner’s Bank bought the property at a sheriff’s sale for $1,418.05. In December 2014, the bank donated it to the city.
Palamar said Monday he’s hoping the city will be able to announce the name of the new owner at the mayor’s State of the City address, slated for 6 p.m. Feb. 4. It will be held in the lower level, in The John O’Hara Room.
He and the mayor weren’t certain Monday if the sale would go through. “One of the contingencies of the sale is for them to obtain a liquor license,” Palamar said.
Aside from that, Muldowney wanted to take the opportunity to show the public how the former Pottsville Club looks.
“It looks better than it did when we acquired it,” Palamar said.
“It really does,” the mayor said.
“A lot of the improvements we did were maintenance improvements that the club didn’t have the staff to do,” Palamar said.
“One of the problems they had were the leaves on the roof. Their drains were blocked,” the mayor said.
And as a result, rainwater started to pool on the roof.
“It had nowhere to go,” the mayor said.
“That’s how this room got flooded a little bit,” Palamar said.
So one of the first things the city did when it took over the property was to have city workers clean off stray leaves and branches from the roof and storm drains, Palamar said.
This isn’t the first time a city mayor has decided to hold the annual address outside of City Hall.
Palamar said in 2007 Mayor John D.W. Reiley delivered the speech at the Majestic Theater, 209 N. Centre St.
But this is the first time a city mayor has had the annual address at the former Pottsville Club property, Palamar said.
The State of the City address is traditionally an opportunity for the mayor to update the public on the activities of its departments, which include its streets department, code enforcement department and its police force.
“We’ll review the last year. And I’d like to encourage private entities and nontaxables, like the school district and the hospital, to get involved with the city, as I’ve been doing for the last two years. I think that’s important,” Muldowney said.
“We’re going to do a PowerPoint as well with this,” Palamar said.
There’s a pull-down screen in The John O’Hara Room.
“What’s really nice is they have a screen already up here,” Palamar said.
On Monday morning, Muldowney decided the podium he’ll speak from should be a few feet away, facing the center of the room.
“So we can have the PowerPoint projected over there while the mayor is speaking over there,” Palamar said.
While touring the facility Monday, the mayor enjoyed the view from the windows in The John O’Hara Room. “Look at the woodpeckers. Do you see them?” he asked Palamar.
“That’s pretty neat. I didn’t realize they were blue,” Palamar said.
“There’s another one on the other side. We have woodpeckers around here that are this big,” the mayor said, as he held up his hands and put between them an area eight inches high.