The Ouray City Council signed off Monday night on the purchase of a two-story building across the street from City Hall, with the intent of converting it into a police station and temporary employee housing.

Councilors voted 4-0 to spend $675,000 to buy the property at 333 Sixth Ave. and plan to relocate the police station there as well as create living units for police officers and public works employees. Councilor Peggy Lindsey did not attend the meeting.

The three bedroom, 2 ½ bathroom, 3,112-square-foot home, built in 1982, is currently owned by the Richard and Mary Lane 1988 Trust, according to property records.

Mayor Ethan Funk said buying the building that formerly housed a coffee shop was less expensive than new construction, though he noted it will require remodeling that’s expected to cost as much as the property acquisition itself in order to create the space city leaders want. That work won’t happen until at least next year.

Funk, who said it’s the first time he can recall the city purchasing property in the 23 years he’s lived in Ouray, acknowledged the deal came together suddenly. The property went on the market March 15 for the same price for which the city bought it.

But the events leading up to Monday night’s vote raise questions about whether the city abided by the state’s open meetings laws in deciding to buy the property.

The council called a special meeting March 19 for an executive session to confer with City Attorney Carol Viner to “discuss the purchase, acquisition, lease, transfer, or sale of real, personal, or other property interest.” State law allows public bodies to meet behind closed doors to receive legal advice and talk about such transactions.

The same section of the law says “no adoption of any proposed policy, position, resolution, rule, regulation, or formal action” can occur in any executive session. The only exception is for the review and approval of executive session minutes. The law prohibits even informal decision-making.

No action items were scheduled after the March 19 executive session. But City Administrator Michelle Metteer and the Realtor who listed the property signed the purchase contract on March 19, the same day as the executive session. The seller, Mary Lane, signed the contract on March 20. The listing for the property indicates it was under contract on March 20.

Funk said during Monday’s meeting the city had already paid earnest money for the property.

Jeff Roberts, executive director of the nonprofit Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition, said it appears city councilors made a decision in executive session and rubber-stamped it in public. That would violate the Colorado Open Meetings Law.

“Executive sessions are for discussions on certain authorized topics, including proposed property transactions. A public body can protect its bargaining position that way. But the final decision-making should happen in a public setting so that the community can observe and understand the process,” Roberts wrote in an email.

The property purchase aims to solve a couple of problems for the Ouray Police Department: workspace and housing.

The police station has long been located in a roughly 500-square-foot space at the entrance to City Hall at 320 Sixth Ave. An audit conducted last year pointed out several deficiencies, including that the station is too small and doesn’t offer a private space to interview suspects, victims or witnesses or a secure place to detain a suspect.

The location of the police station inside City Hall is also problematic — it’s at the main entrance to the building across the hall from city offices, with the Ouray Public Library farther down the hall. That creates safety concerns in the building if there’s a problem with someone in the police department.

City officials also intend for the building at 333 Sixth Ave. to offer temporary housing for police officers and public works employees who need a place to stay for the night.

The city currently requires its police officers to live in Ouray County and be able to respond to calls for service within 20 minutes when they’re on duty. All full-time officers currently live within that 20-minute response time area. But that requirement, combined with Ouray’s exorbitant housing costs, makes it difficult for the city to hire officers. City-provided housing would theoretically allow the city to hire officers who could live outside Ouray County but stay overnight in Ouray during their shifts.

“This is not an expenditure — this is an investment in moving the city forward,” Councilor Michael Underwood said. “It’s pragmatic, it’s fiscally responsible and it makes sense.”

Funk said the city is thinking about using additional space in the building to create two affordable housing units, though nothing is set in stone.

The council also approved a leaseback agreement allowing the current resident of the building, the seller’s son, to stay for another 60 days. He will pay the city $1,500 a month in rent. The seller must also pay the city a $1,500 security deposit.

Viner told councilors the building owner’s attorney wants to review the leaseback agreement, prompting Councilor Tamara Gulde to express concerns about potential hiccups in finalizing the purchase. But Viner and others pointed out that the agreement requires the seller to pay the city $350 a day if the tenant fails to vacate.

Gulde said she likes the fact that the building is so close to City Hall.

“I don’t like that it’s in the condition that it is, but we know what we’re dealing with after the inspection,” she said.