Retirement Systems of Alabama CEO David Bronner gave an update Tuesday on plans for a new State House in Montgomery and said the estimated construction cost is $325 million.

Bronner included information about the project in his report to the Teachers’ Retirement System Board of Control at its quarterly meeting.

The construction budget is $325 million with provisions to go up to $350 million to cover unforeseen items or expenses Bronner said.

Site work is under way on the five-story building, which will be behind the current State House on Ripley Street.

The RSA, which has built office buildings throughout Montgomery’s capitol complex over several decades, will pay for construction and lease the building to the Legislature at a rate to give the RSA an 8% return on its investment.

After Tuesday’s meeting, Bronner answered questions about the project. Bronner said he will push to get the project completed in 2025 or 2026.

Bronner was asked why the project was a good deal for the RSA and for taxpayers.

“I think the big thing for the Retirement System is an 8% return on a fixed income environment right now, which is fine. It’s excellent,” Bronner said. “I think the big thing for the public, this is something that has been in need since I was a youngster.”

Bronner, who has been CEO of the RSA for 50 years, said he remembers talking to House Speaker McCorquodale about the need. McCorquodale was speaker from 1975 to 1982, when the Legislature still met in the Capitol.

In 1985, the Legislature moved into the current State House, a retrofitted building constructed for what was then the Alabama Highway Department in 1963. The Highway Department, now called the Department of Transportation, moved to a new building on Coliseum Boulevard.

“If the Highway Department moves out of a building because it’s so bad, that should tell you something,” Bronner said. “For them to leave, you know it’s not in good shape. It’s deteriorating.”

Officials have talked for years about the need to replace the State House, citing limited space for public access, poor accessibility for people with disabilities, flooding and mold.

A facility assessment conducted by an engineering firm in March 2020 found that the eight-story, 315,000 square foot building needed $51 million in repairs, renovations and replacements over 10 years.

Bronner said the RSA will not be involved in the demolition of the current State House or development of a green space and parking lot on that site, which sits between the Capitol and the new State House.

In 2022, the Legislative Council, a 20-member panel of state lawmakers, directed senior legislative staff officials to explore the idea of a new State House and have discussions with the RSA.

In May 2023, the Legislature passed a bill to help clear the way for the project. The bill gave control of the state-owned property that is site of the new State House to the Legislative Council, a panel of 20 legislators. It gave the Legislative Council the authority to contract with the RSA for construction and maintenance of a new State House. The site was previously used as a parking lot.

In September, the Legislative Council voted to sign a construction agreement with RSA on the project.

Bronner said the goal is to keep the budget in the $300 million to $325 million range. But he said he wanted the board to sign of on the $350 million budget because of circumstances that could drive up the cost. An example, he said, was a hurricane that caused damage during construction of the Battle House Tower in Mobile. Another example was the discovering of a toxic plume during construction of the RSA Tower in Montgomery.

“I can’t control Mother Nature,” Bronner said.