Bettendorf's civic and recreational amenities – how to upgrade or replace and where such facilities should be built – got plenty of discussion in this year's city budget and planning sessions and are likely to get even more in the coming months.
Finding a way to finance such an undertaking won't be easy. The city is trying to reduce its long-term debt while continuing to finance major infrastructure improvements ranging from a new I-80/Middle sewer and water line extension to large street projects (Utica Ridge, Tanglefoot and Forest Grove) to finishing an ambitious recreational trail build-out.
Three of the city's main recreational and civic facilities – the swimming pool, the community center and the Life Fitness Center – are all showing their age.
The Middle Park pool (Splash Landing) is now more than a dozen years old with a history of filter problems and equipment failures. Serious (lap) swimmers have never been happy with the facility because of its limited length for training. Splash Landing was designed for the water slide crowd, and its play/spray area for toddlers was undersized from the day it opened.
The community center, built in the 1930's, has seen improvements to its small gymnasium, which has been popular for volleyball leagues and other youth sports. The center's meeting rooms remain popular with senior and community groups.
The Life Fitness Center – probably the most-used city facility (after the library) and the closest to being user-supported through membership fees – was built as a tennis facility by a private group in the 1970's. The city purchased the facility in 1986 and remodeled it into a full-service fitness center with tennis courts, running track, basketball courts and work-out facilities.
The building was expanded later to enlarge the running track, add a small indoor lap pool and make room for more fitness equipment. However, major upgrades will be needed if the facility is to compete successfully for users in coming years.
Put those issues together with Mayor Bob Gallagher's call for a youth sports facility and you have plenty of gist for city staff and city council members to ponder.
A scheduled meeting between the park board and council on improvements planned for Forest Grove Park was put on hold last month after City Administrator Decker Ploehn asked for more time to allow staff to flesh out possible directions for the upgrading civic/recreational amenities in the city.
The recently completed Forest Grove Master Plan did not include any space, or budget, for a new pool, community activity center or fitness facility. Even if more land could be obtained from a private partner, a far north location for a new facility would not be ideal for most current city residents.
The city's new capital improvement plan calls for spending a total of $3.5 million over the next five years for improvements to the new Forest Grove Park. But those dollars won't go far in turning the 95-acre corn field into a usable – mostly passive – park, and certainly not one with a sizable new civic/recreational facility.
So far, the general public hasn't been invited into the discussion. With such significant decisions on the horizon for city amenities, now would seem a good time to reach out beyond city hall for ideas.
