The Pella City Council will set a public hearing for the main facility of the proposed telecommunications utility at their meeting Tuesday. A resolution on the agenda would set April 21st as the date for the council to award a contract to construct a 16,500 square foot telecom and electric utility facility. Short Elliott Hendrickson, Inc. is the project’s engineer, and estimates the new building will cost approximately $3.25 million. The facility would include a combination of office space, a data center, and indoor storage space, and is located near the corner of South Prairie and Truman Road, south of the current electric utility location. Assuming council approves a bid in late April, construction would begin in early May, with substantial completion expected by late November — the same proposed timeline of the proposed fiber optic network. The hearing will be scheduled in conjunction with the notice to proceed and award of contract for the Pella Fiber to the Home Network Project, which includes extending a state-of-the-art fiber to all homes and businesses within Pella’s corporate limits. Both hearings will be held on Tuesday, April 21st, assuming council approves the resolution for the facility at their meeting this Tuesday.