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Architect outlines plan for Kingsport aquatic center
KINGSPORT — City leaders received a detailed presentation and more information on the aquatic center project Monday afternoon, along with a timeline on when construction could begin and when the facility might be open to the public.
Kingsport plans to build a 46,400-square-foot aquatic center across the street from the MeadowView Conference Resort and Convention Center, roughly behind the driving range off Wilcox Drive. At the same time, the YMCA is planning to build its new 33,000-square-foot facility beside the aquatic center and operate the center for the city. A new road off Meadowview Parkway — called Aquatics Drive — would reach the two new facilities.
During a BMA work session Monday afternoon, city officials received an update on the project from Lose & Associates — the firm hired by Kingsport to conduct the architectural work, civil engineering and landscape design on the project, including the YMCA’s new facility.
Lose has wrapped up the programming for the aquatic center and came forth Monday with the master site plan for the two facilities and estimated cost of the project. Next up will be the design development phase, then construction.
Chris Camp, president of Lose & Associates, said his goal is to have the construction drawings ready by March 2010, then when the permitting is complete, construction could begin anytime thereafter. Camp said he envisions the indoor section of the aquatic center and the YMCA being open by August 2011 and the outdoor components by January 2012.
The master plan calls for the aquatic center to have two outdoor pools (a leisure pool with two water slides and a kiddie pool), a sand volleyball court and two indoor pools (a 50-meter competition pool and a warm water pool).
Other features of the facility include meeting room space, locker rooms, administration space, a coffee shop and party rooms (rental space). Future outdoor additions could include a lazy river ($1.25 million), wave rider ($1 million), mat racer ($850,000) and splash pad ($400,000), Camp said.
Mayor Dennis Phillips raised the question about Camp’s phasing of the project, asking if every feature the city has been talking about is going to be included initially.
“We’re giving you everything you need to meet the original program and also have the ability to go beyond that if the need is warranted,” Camp said. “What you see is communities building these facilities and then coming back wanting to add other features.”
City Manager John Campbell said the phasing of the outdoor features was not just cost driven.
“If you have new features every two or three years, it makes for an interesting facility — not having the same elements all the time,” Campbell said.
Camp agreed, saying typical aquatic centers have a 10-year build-out plan in order to keep attracting new people to the facility.
“(Adding features) every couple of years, you still have that new and exciting feeling. The key is adding features to keep drawing people in,” Camp said. “I think that the community is going to be very pleased with what they get in phase one. You’re getting an awful lot of water in phase one.”
The estimated cost of the aquatic center is $13.8 million (plus another $500,000 for wetlands mitigation).
Projected cost of the new YMCA is $5.6 million.
Alderman Ken Marsh called the aquatic center a great example of mission creep, a project that has gotten completely out of control.
Vice Mayor Ben Mallicote, who argued strongly for locating the aquatic center downtown, ran down the cost estimates for site work on the facility.
“One of the reasons that we ended up here was we were told a number of times that when you took into consideration land acquisition and prep work, downtown was so much more expensive,” Mallicote said. “When you look at the roadwork and site development at (the current site) at $2.3 million, add the YMCA site work and you’re at $2.9 million, add the wetlands remediation at about $500,000 and you’re at $3.4 million.”
Mallicote said when you add operating costs, the cost to potentially run KATS buses and the Kingsport Greenbelt to the aquatic center, “God only knows what it will come to.”
“When you take into account all of the additional costs of doing it here, I’ll be surprised if we’re doing it for less than (downtown),” he said.
Hodge Associates of Morristown conducted a site analysis last year for the city of Kingsport, looking at the top three proposed sites for the aquatic center — downtown, Legion Pool and Meadowview.
According to that report, the cost for site work at the Meadowview site came to $2.3 million, with the wetlands remediation at $1.1 million, for a total of $3.4 million. Traffic signals and landscaping brought the total cost to $3.7 million.
The downtown site on the other hand had projected costs of $7 million, which included land acquisition, demolition and site work, and intersection improvements.
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It is going to get to the point, very soon, where the fixed income folks won't be able to afford their property taxes. My father knows a ton of Eastman and Kodak retirees who had their IRAs wiped out by the last crash and are now struggling to make ends meet. Combine that with Kodak's recent retiree benefit cuts, and you have a portion of the population struggling. This nonsense of building a pool and paying 40 million for a private medical school likely won't have a return on investment for some time (if ever), but it will certainly squeeze the fixed income population in the short term when they jack the property taxes to pay for it. It is actually quite shameful that we are spending money like this.
"We are blessed, as a city, to be able to move forward with projects like this at a time when other communities are stagnating or backing up."
Ms. Mcnabb,
How are we blessed when Kingsport is already in the hole almost 200 mil. Don't you think there is a reason other communities are not spending like Kingsport is, maybe to keep from going more in debt on projects that are not needed or can wait. I'm sure there are other thing more important than swiimming pools at the moment.
I just wonder how we are going to pay for this? the 1.3 mil loss of MeadowView the over 300,000 of cattails the 40 mil they want to add for king. All when the population is falling like obamas poll numbers. State revenue is in a year decline WHO is gonna pay for all this spending. Our job outlook is bleak at best. YMCA was going to do a big indoor pool for FREE but nooooo we gotta waste money time and time again. We where told that MedowView and the golf course was going to be raking in the $$ by the year 2000 nope loss every year and we keep thinking the retail band-aid is going to fix everything well how can than be when no one is going to live here?
The current debt of Kingsport is
around $190,000,000 we will see a tax hike
Please see this sitefor some numbers
Don't know where the downtown site they considered is located, but what about the former foundry parcel of land they just acquired (where the proposed board of education offices are slated)? The property is already acquired and demolition has been mostly completed on the property thus saving those dollars (and don't forget the "beautiful" sculpture and corner sidewalk and landscaping that has already been done). The site work could not possibly be more expensive there than the site prep that will be required at the Meadowview location.
By the way, I'll bet you a couple shares of AIG that the coffee shop won't be included in the final project. It is too close to Dave Clark's shop over there across from the Detention Center.
This might end up being a bigger waste of money than Meadowview was. I absolutely love it how a load of us were on here talking about the wastefulness of the project and how it was absolutely unnecessary. People told us we were not being "progressive," that we were against the city growing, etc. etc. Valerie Joh said that, literally, Kingsport was ready to step off the cliff. Turns out that people on the BMA are starting to come to our side of things. Of course they would never vote against it now because the horse is already out of the barn, but still. This is going to be quite the boondoggle before it is all said and done.
"You’re getting an awful lot of water in phase one.” That's the understatement of the year since that areas floods massively when it rains!! Well, I guess it'll save on filling the pools:)
I am, as is Mr. Mallicote, a proponent of the downtown site.
I don't know how I'll ever be able to get out there regularly to enjoy this new feature, but I believe it will be made affordable for all citizens and that we wil see transportation out there made available in some form.
Our city leaders realize that these are must do items.
We are blessed, as a city, to be able to move forward with projects like this at a time when other communities are stagnating or backing up.
I'm saddened that citizens make comments about something on which they are not educated. If you would research the YMCA, you would know that they offer financial assistance for ALL of their programs. This new project will be one that offers huge benefits to our community and the final product will be one accessible and affordable to ALL. Possibly you should make the effort to be fully informed before you post public comments demeaning an organization and city that does have its residents' long term interest in mind. Decisions of this magnitude are not made lightly and I assure you this will be a huge asset to our community.
Looks like we are going to be another Dollywood right here at home. Only the rich will be able to afford this, this will keep out the lower class. Most working people cannot afford the "Y" now so how would this help the working class.
I am saddened by the fact Kingsport goes out of town to find Engineering/Architects' services....shame. There are PLENTY of good firms in the Tri-Cities that should have been used.
This would be great but I am not sure this is the time. As much as I would love to have something like this is it really the time when people do not have jobs? How much is the membership to something like this going to cost? I would love to have a gym that teaches boxing or something like that. It's just odd to build something like this that no one can afford.
How about halt on all the spending. THis is Crazy
Since the cost in the City would be $7 million and at MeadowView is $3.7 Million. They could have moved it farther from town say Sullivan Garden at Soccer fields I bet it would have come in under $1.2 Million. What a WASTE.