Lapeer County OKs lease for Lamb Steele Building

By Phil Foley
Special to the Tri-City Times

LAPEER — Lapeer County Board of Commissioners members voted unanimously Thursday, Oct. 22, to approve a 10-year lease with Imlay City for the use of the upper floor of the Lamb-Steele Building as a senior center.

The lease, which runs July 2026 to July 2036, requires the county to pay the city $12,000 in the first year, with a $1,000 annual increase each year thereafter to use the 9,494-square-foot upper floor for senior programs run by the Lapeer County Health Department.

While Commissioner Scott McMahan said the lease was a “substantial increase,” with rent nearly doubling by 2036, Commissioner Ian Kempf noted it was still well below market rate.

Commissioner Bryan Zender pointed out that given the cost of building repairs, the lease is “way cheaper than owning the building.”

Two years ago, the city spent $600,000 to replace the HVAC system for the building, which also houses the Imlay City Police Department and a Lapeer County EMS station on its lower level.

Financed with a $1.6 million grant from Zola Steele Lamb and her husband, Scott, the Lamb-Steele Building opened in 1986.

Noting that the seniors are “not going anywhere,” Zender said a 10-year lease made sense. However, he added the county has an out if voters reject the 0.3916-mill countywide senior millage, which generates $1.98 million annually for senior programs.

Commissioners also voted unanimously to approve hiring a purchasing agent for the county, a move Kempf called “long overdue.”

Chief Financial Officer Jacky Bennett told commissioners the move will save the county money by centralizing purchases. She noted the county spends $1 million annually on office supplies alone. The new position will have a pay range of $65,000 to $93,000, including benefits.