The Poplar Bluff City Council has begun to consider other locations for city hall, the police department and other offices, after hiring architects more than six months ago to design a facility using existing property downtown.
The new locations may be outside the downtown area, according to city manager Mark Massingham, who said he could not comment on a specific site.
"Several months ago the city council and administration were made aware of other sites that may be more economical," Massingham said in a statement. "As stewards of the taxpayer's money the city council found it to be in the best interest of its citizens to explore those opportunities."
Location will be discussed in a future public meeting, before a decision is made, Massingham said, but he did not know when that would be.
The future location of city hall and the police department has been debated for about three years, after officials announced the condition of the Oak Street building was too bad to make repairs.
Progress has been held up repeatedly by changes in city leadership and the council.
A downtown location for city offices was selected following public meetings in 2014 and 2015.
Preliminary work has been done for the 101 Oak St., site, but all other work has been put on hold, Massingham said.
The city council still meets at its chambers on Oak Street and city court is still held in the complex, but the majority of other operations have been relocated.
City offices rent space from Southern Bank on Vine Street for $2,750 a month and the police department rents a building on Poplar Street for $5,000 a month. Renovations were done by the city to both buildings before operations relocated.
"At this time the temporary locations work but the space for operations is very limited and not citizen friendly," Massingham said.