Cottonwood Shores Civic Center remodel almost done
Renovations at the Cottonwood Shores Civic Center, 4111 Cottonwood Drive, are drawing to a close after nearly four months of improvements, including new flooring, a kitchen expansion, and a larger restroom. Courtesy photo
Renovations at the Cottonwood Shores Civic Center, 4111 Cottonwood Drive, are nearly complete following about four months of work. The center is the site of Cottonwood Shores City Council meetings, houses The Cupboard at Cottonwood food pantry, and hosts events throughout the year.
Among the upgrades are new flooring, a kitchen expansion to include a stovetop, more room for the food pantry, and a larger restroom.
The building also received a fresh coat of paint thanks to Marble Falls Independent School District students during the Rick Edwards Day of Service on Feb. 24.
Cottonwood Shores City Administrator J.C. Hughes hopes the renovations will entice groups to host even more events at the center.
“For people renting it, it’s much more versatile than what we had before,” he said.
Hughes said costs should come in under budget.
“It was supposed to cost $35,000, but we’ve only used about ($30,000) of it,” he said.
Improvements started after the decision in late November to enlarge the restroom so it met with Americans with Disabilities Act regulations.
“The previous restroom was about the size of a closet,” Hughes said. “We just felt like it was improper, and we wanted to be ADA-compliant.”
After that project was complete, the city turned its attention to the rest of the building.
“It was kind of like a domino effect,” Hughes said. “We already wanted to take these counters out that were in the middle of the room that didn’t make any sense, but once we took those out, we had to replace the flooring. It was a domino effect for sure, but it all started with the restroom.”
The city is currently working on the center’s sound problem.
“We’re in the process of determining what kind of acoustical panels we’re going to put onto the walls to reduce the echo in there,” Hughes said.
With the work, seating at City Council meetings has been reorganized.
“We’re sitting differently,” Hughes said. “Mayor and staff sit (on the right), council sits (on the left), the public sits behind. It’s more visible to the public, and they’ll be able to hear better and we’ll be able to see them.”
Civic Center renovations took longer than expected because city staff had to keep up with their normal workload, including water line and street repairs.
“It took four months, but that’s because they couldn’t dedicate all their time,” Hughes said.
The newly upgraded center will host a Horseshoe Bay Business Alliance coffee mixer on April 26. A community open house for residents is in the works.
“We’re going to have an open house sometime (in April) or in early May so that everyone can come see the new Civic Center,” Hughes said.