Renovation work can now begin on the Riverside Community Building after a rental agreement was approved by the Riverside City Council to John Sojka.

The agreement states that Sojka will pay for the cost of utilities until the intended sale of the property at 81 East First Street can be finalized to him. Mayor Allen Schneider says it’s been a long, drawn-out process, “We had agreed to sell that building to John Sojka and found out that there was a question about the ownership. It had been purchased by a corporation that’s now defunct and I think there was the belief or the understanding that it had been given to the city at some point in the past, and we weren’t able to find any record of that so we’re kind of working through that process.”

The building was initially set to be sold last November. The city is working with their attorney to gain the title of the building to be able to sell it to Sojka. He plans on putting a few businesses in the space. If the sale fails to go through, the city has agreed to reimburse Sojka for cost of ceiling removal.