Petition calls for bond election on Meadowlakes facilities rebuild
A rendering of proposed improvements to several Meadowlakes facilities, including combining the city’s clubhouse and golf pro shop into one building. Courtesy image
Some Meadowlakes residents are circulating a petition to put a $7.5 million plan to demolish and rebuild city facilities on the November 2023 ballot. The City Council was prepared to sell that amount in certificate of obligation bonds in mid-July to pay for a new pool, clubhouse, and golf pro shop, a move that would not require an election.
“We’ve heard indications from promoters of the petition that they’re pretty close to having a requisite number of votes,” Mayor Mark Bentley said. “If it was approved (in November), we’d have to do the cost assessment again and probably sell bonds in December.”
Financial forces, including inflation, could raise construction costs down the road, Bentley continued.
“It already has a fairly tight budget,” he said. “If we wait until the first of next year, I think it’s going to make it that much tighter and we’re going to have to start cutting out portions of it.”
Although he’d like to get the project moving, Bentley supports residents having a voice in the matter.
“I’m willing to go with what the citizens of Meadowlakes want,” he said. “If they don’t want it, we won’t get it. If they do want it, we’ll proceed. It’s not up to me to dictate what they should want.”
City officials have been discussing the rebuilds since late 2022 due to the age of the structures and the need for significant repairs. Councilors also want to combine the city’s clubhouse and pro shop into one building.
“They’re both fairly aged,” Bentley said. “There are some significant problems, particularly with the clubhouse, with structure, water and sewer pipe sizes, and a general need for updating. The project will include making those a single building for energy savings and for convenience.”
The plan also calls for expanding the swimming pool by 1,000 square-feet.
“It’s totally inadequate for the number of people that we have,” Bentley said. “As the population gets younger in Meadowlakes, there will be more demand because the children will obviously use it more than the retirees and other adults.”
Reconstruction efforts would be done sequentially.
“The clubhouse/restaurant would still be in service while the new one is being built,” Bentley said.
Money to pay off the bond would come from ad valorem taxes and utility revenues.
“The average would be around $100 a year per household,” Bentley said. “If you have a house double the average price, then yours are going to be double that.”
View a 3D panoramic rendering of the proposed renovations on Vimeo.