Irvine leaders quietly spent millions of dollars remodeling their city hall in the years before revelations the budget faces a multi-million dollar structural deficit. 

Now, city council members are debating trying to figure out where that money went. 

It’s unclear exactly how much the remodel cost, but orders reviewed by Voice of OC obtained through a public records request show change orders drove the price tag to between $12 million and over $15 million between 2022 and April 2026.

To review the purchase orders released by the city, click here. 

It’s unclear if any of those funds are double counted in change orders, and city staff did not respond to questions on how much was spent by the city on the remodel.

Now, city leaders are debating running an audit of the funds to figure out where they got spent. 

City Faces Budget Problems After Remodel

The new scrutiny on the remodel’s expenses comes after city council members learned the city faces a multimillion dollar budget deficit annually within the next few years without major shifts. 

[Read: Irvine’s Budget Deficit Could Lead to Parking Fees and No New Libraries]

That set off alarm bells for city council members and the public, who’d been told repeatedly for years that Irvine has one of the best municipal budgets in the country and never disclosed any sign of financial stress previously. 

[Read: How Rocky Are Orange County’s Municipal Budgets?]

After less than a year in the position, City Manager Sean Crumby submitted his notice to retire weeks after letting the council know of the deficit, and his replacement has not yet been selected. 

City council members also saw their personal budgets double over the last few years, expanding their ability to hire staff and advertise city events as they headed into a deficit. 

[Read: Irvine City Council Quietly Doubles Their Personal Budgets Ahead of Deficit]

At their meeting on May 12, city council members unanimously voted to have their staff figure out options to audit a series of past expenses, including the city hall renovations and how the city spent its federal COVID bailout funding. 

“We should get a diagnosis before we start treatment. So this memo is that diagnosis,” said Councilwoman Melinda Liu at the May meeting. “The point of this request is not to assign blame, it is to adjust our way of using taxpayer funds.” 

“I want to know what happened here so it doesn’t happen again,” said Councilwoman Kathleen Treseder. 

While staff were directed to bring back more discussions on how the audits could move forward within 60 days, they missed that deadline and it has not yet been discussed. 

What Got Purchased? 

While some of the work was to refit the building, including resealing windows and installing new air conditioning and electrical systems, much of the remodel was devoted to cosmetic improvements, according to purchase orders obtained by Voice of OC. 

Many of the city’s largest purchases went to new furniture for city staff and a redesign of their cubicle layout throughout the second and third floors of city hall, along with new offices for city council members and the city manager. 

Some of the most expensive projects were a series of “cubicle reconfigurations” that cost a combined $2.1 million, along with another $1.9 million on new furniture for a series of different offices. 

New furniture and the remodel for the “city manager office and finance/administration area” alone ran over $235,000 alone according to purchase orders. 

Roughly $3 million was also spent remodeling the police department headquarters, including new furniture, workstations, elevator upgrades and new carpet. 

Noah Biesiada is a Voice of OC reporter. Contact him at nbiesiada@voiceofoc.org.