In a split decision Tuesday, members of the Oak Harbor City Council voted to build a $4.6-million community room as part of the new sewage treatment plant.

The room will be big enough to seat more than 250 people and will be on the second floor of an interpretive center, with views of Windjammer Park and the water beyond.

“This will be fulfilling a promise we made to the community,” said Councilman Joel Servatius, an outspoken proponent of the project.

Servatius said the project should be funded with as little money as possible from ratepayers and listed different possible funding sources, including the Rural Counties Development Fund, also known as “0.09 funds.”

THE IDEA of having a meeting room incorporated into one of the buildings of the treatment plan seemed to be moribund at an October meeting after council found it was going to be smaller than they wanted and cost more than they anticipated at $2.4 million. But Servatius proposed that they ask the architect to increase the size and come up with a new cost estimate, which was presented Tuesday.

Several other council and community members also spoke passionately about the inclusion of the community room.

Larry Munns, former commanding officer  of Whidbey Island Naval Air Station, and Oak Harbor Chamber Director Christine Cribb were among them, saying that it will create an economic boost by luring conferences to the community, fulfill a community need and realize a decades-old community aspiration.

Several people emphasized that the city has a long history of dreaming big and then putting unrealized plans on the shelf.

“If we don’t build it now, it won’t get built,” resident Hal Hovey said.

TUESDAY’S DECISION wasn’t without disagreement. Councilmen Jim Campbell and, especially, Rick Almberg argued against the project, citing a long list of reasons.

Almberg said he was in favor of a convention or meeting space downtown, but he argued that incorporating it into a sewage treatment facility doesn’t make fiscal sense. He said the $4.9-million price tag is about twice as much as it would cost for a stand-alone structure.

He worried that it will likely mean even higher rates for sewer customers who are already facing big increases with construction of the sewage plant, which will be located on top and north of the current plant in Windjammer Park.

The newest estimates range from $91 million to $110 million and the larger community room will push the number higher.

“We don’t have a plan,” he said. “We have no idea how we’re going to pay for it.”

He argued that spending money on the community room would jeopardize other Windjammer Park enhancement that have been proposed, such as a splash park and an amphitheater.

He said the break-even rental rates presented by City Administrator Doug Merman are unrealistically high.

But having lower rates would mean that the city is subsidizing a project that competes with the local hospitality industry, which he said he’s philosophically opposed to.

Finally, he said the community room will delay the larger project even further than it already is.

Originally slated to go online in 2017, it’s been pushed to 2018.

CAMPBELL AGREED with Almberg that the high cost was troubling.

“The citizens of Oak Harbor are really conscious of how much it’s going to cost,” he said.

He added that if the city “does economic development right,” a hotel will build the meeting room.

The proposed community room would have a maximum occupancy of 500 people without chairs, 264 with chairs and 200 with tables.

In addition to the meeting space, it will include a catering kitchen, storage space, restrooms and an elevator.

Merriman, currently both the city administrator and finance director, estimated the annual operating costs at $321,000.

Yet that includes a debt payment of $276,000 a year and may not be nearly that high if the city uses other funding sources besides a bond.

To recover the estimated annual operating costs, Merriman calculated that the city would have to charge $1,760 a day in rent if the vacancy rate is 50 percent.

COUNCILMAN BOB Severns, who was sworn in as mayor Tuesday, but doesn’t take that office till Jan. 1, said he was struggling with the cost of construction and whether the break-even rental rates were realistic.

He asked Merriman if city staff wants to build the room.

Merriman said it’s a policy issue for the council but he added that it might make sense if the city is smart about financing.

“It will be no cheaper in the future than it is today,” he said.

The motion to build the community room passed in a 4-3 vote.

Servatius, Hizon, Councilwoman Beth Munns and Councilman Danny Paggao voted in favor; Almberg, Severns and Campbell were opposed.