Politics & Government

Sports Park Meeting Wednesday; City May Form Task Force

The city may form a Sports Park Task Force to make recommendations to City Council about what a deal with the YMCA or Boys & Girls Club should include.

Originally published 2:27 p.m. June 25.

After the prospect of a private entity being hired to manage the city's Sports Park complex came to light last September, kids, parents and Sports Park employees asked the city to establish a citizen advisory group be part of the process.

They may get their way Wednesday as City Council moves to establish a task force and set dates for when to decide what to do with the Sports Park.

City staff recommend a Sports Park Task Force be created to consider specific recommendations before the city asks the YMCA and Boys & Girls Club for proposals.

The task force could include members of the Sports Park Collaborative, a group of more than 70 local residents and local organizations who came together to present the city an alternative to YMCA management.

A report to detail recommendations could be produced this fall and a final vote taken in November.

The new process follows months of arguments and negotiations between the city, who openly favored a YMCA deal, and a majority of the community who said they didn't want YMCA management and that the city reached a foregone conclusion well before public input was sought.

Many also called the process less than transparent.

City Council did not ask city staff in a public meeting to pursue a YMCA deal and no formal request for proposals process was carried out.

YMCA management was twice brought to a vote this spring but Councilmembers delayed a decision to continue to seek more input from the public. 

See the plan attached here in PDF form.


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