Aiken leaders eye City Hall as new event, convention center
News 12 First at Five / Thursday, Apr. 11, 2013  AIKEN, S.C.
(WRDW) -- Right now, the Aiken Municipal Building isn't used for
much. There's a couple offices upstairs, and the Aiken City
Council meets up there too. But downstairs, administration and
finance departments have moved out to a new building on Laurens
Street. Now, the city is eyeing the old space for a new and
improved events center.  "Well, I don't have an opinion or a
position in either way, but I feel like if it's worked out well
between the city and everybody else that it could be a good
thing," says Van Smith, of Lionel Smith, Ltd.  But debate at
Monday night's city council meeting put the brakes on the
roughly $1.5 million project that would allow around 300 people
to use the meeting space at once.  "There's a lot of needs in
any community. That doesn't mean the city doesn't have to
provide for the need," said Councilman Philip Merry at Monday's
council meeting.  Some council members