Millwood City Hall has new look

Growing up in Millwood, Curtis Anderson remembers riding his gold Schwinn bicycle by Millwood City Hall on his way to his best friend Dan Mork’s house.

Today, Mork is the mayor of Millwood. Anderson, of Design Works, designed and coordinated the recent renovation of City Hall, completed last December.

“We grew up together,” Anderson said, and then laughing, “Now he’s the mayor, and I have to be on my best behavior.”

It is the first project he and Mork have worked on together since they were kids.

“That’s what made the project very cool,” Anderson, 52, said. “It was really fun and memorable for me.”

Anderson and Mork met as preschoolers at Zion Lutheran Church. They went on to attend Pasadena Elementary, Argonne Junior High and West Valley High School together. Mork remembers double dating with Anderson in high school.

“We ran around together all the time,” Mork said. “He is one of my best friends.”

Anderson remembers admiring the architecture of the building as a young boy.

“I think it was meant to be for me to be the design leader on this project,” Anderson said. “As a kid I always thought the building had a unique look.”

The building, erected in 1957, is “midcentury modern,” Anderson’s favorite design period. Midcentury modern, relates to any structure built post World War II to 1968.

“It was pretty tired and worn,” Anderson said about the building. “We retained the historical feel and at the same time delivered a design that looks good but very functional and maintenance free.”

The biggest challenge Anderson encountered was whether he could stain the original blond wood.

“My painters went through three or four different stains trying to retain the original wood,” Anderson said. “But it wasn’t working so we came to the decision we needed to paint most of the wood.”

The remodeling job replaced the carpet in the entry way and hallway with porcelain tile, as well as upgraded both bathrooms. It also replaced the carpet in the council chambers and business offices, and energy efficient fixtures replaced the fluorescent lights.

Anderson framed and installed historic pictures of Millwood in the hallways.

“I think it turned out beautifully,” Mork said of the project. “The interior was in pretty poor shape. It is much more open, clean and brighter.”

The City Council awarded the project to Design Works with the lowest construction bid of $48,246. Additional items added by council afterward, such as renovating the Planning Commission office and purchasing new furniture for the council chambers, brought the project cost to $60,655.

“It had been a long time since any changes had been made,” Millwood clerk-treasurer Eva Colomb said. “The painting really brightened it up in here.”