Byline: Emily Johns; Staff Writer
For Tom Smrekar and his wife, Julie, driving to hockey practice is a full-time job.
The Smrekars, rasing two young rink rats, drive about 500 miles a month to find open ice.
'Last Sunday morning, we were at the Wakota Arena in South St. Paul with my daughter's team, and my son's team was in Northfield,' said Tom Smrekar. Cases like theirs put Farmington School District officials in the mood to listen last year when local athletics groups asked for help to build new sports facilities.
Last week, the school board voted to hold a referendum on May 8 asking taxpayers to finance a $24 million 'sports and wellness' addition to the new high school. It's a gutsy move for the district, already building one of the most expensive high schools in the state - a school whose price went up as a year-long lawsuit between the district and the city delayed construction. The dispute over the school's location, according to Mayor Kevin Soderberg, 'turned the community upside down.'
The sports proposal includes an Olympic-size pool and two sheets of ice that the district says will draw thousands for tournaments.
But some community critics are wondering: Does the district need it?
How we got here
If high school planning had gone perfectly, sans lawsuit, the district probably would not have pursued such a grand sports complex, concedes Superintendent Brad Meeks.
For one thing, the school would have included a pool and gymnasiums that were taken out of the original plans as costs rose. But, Meeks said, 'I think we would need it even if everything had gone as planned. There's a demand for these facilities.'
The two ice rinks and 50-meter pool would be attached to the northwest side of the high school, where original plans called for a 25-yard pool. A four-court gym would attach to the northeast side of the building, where original plans called for a two-court gym.
The ice sheets are the only type of sports amenity not mentioned in the original plans.
The delay in the construction would allow the school and the sports complex to be built simultaneously, meaning significant construction savings.
The lawsuit's impact
The dispute that caused the delays began in 2005, when the school district sued the city because it refused to let the district build on protected farmland in western Farmington. City officials said they weren't ready to develop that area and are revising a long-range plan that could keep areas around the school as farmland until 2030.
The parties settled in May. The district got its preferred site but had to pay the cost of building a road by the school. The delay raised the total cost from $83 million to around $100 million, forcing the district to alter the building's design. The district could afford much of the increase because proceeds from the bonds it sold to finance the project had been sitting in a bank earning interest during the legal fight.
But on Jan. 8, the school board voted to reject using $6.26 million in bonds to put the 25-yard pool, the two-court gym and two tennis courts back into school plans. At that same meeting, the board discussed the proposal for the more elaborate sports complex.
'It seems ironic that the school district administration and board are now comfortable proposing a $24 million facility to accomplish what $6.26 million ... would have accomplished,' wrote Farmington resident Tim Burke in a letter to the Minnesota Department of Education, which has to approve the project. Burke, a vocal critic of the plans who started a website called Nosportsplex.org, isn't convinced that the project is an educational asset.
'The proposal is, in fact, designed and promoted as a community recreation facility and economic development tool for Farmington,' he said.
Paying for operations
According to Mayor Soderberg, Farmington residents want a community athletics facility. A city survey last year showed a desire for gym space and an aquatic center, but the city decided the $25 million price tag was too hefty.
Enter the school district. With a larger tax base than the city, it can build a similar facility with a lower tax impact on residents. And if the district proves that it's an educational project, the state will pay some of the district's debt.
The Farmington Youth Hockey Association estimates that it will buy 2,100 hours of ice time a year, which could bring in $400,000. The association also promised to help cover $100,000 of any shortfall for two years. Swim meets and concessions could bring in another $200,000, according to school district projections. The district also could sell memberships to the center.
The district estimates that in the first years, the complex would lose $325,000 annually. Under state law, it could levy residents for shortfalls it can attribute to the ice arena, but it would have to take the rest from its general fund.
'Our goal is to make it budget-neutral, as far as the district's concerned,' Superintendent Meeks said. 'Our goal isn't to make a lot of money ... We just think it's a great amenity for the school district and the community.'
Emily Johns - 612-673-7460
Athletic facilities in Farmington
Current Farmington High School
- Three-court main gymnasium
- Two-court secondary gymnasium
- Weight training room
- Stadium field and track
- Field event competition areas (shot put/discus, pole vault, etc.)
- Eight tennis courts
- Baseball/softball practice fields (overlapping outfields)
- About four practice soccer/football fields (a little less than four full fields)
New Farmington High School
- Three-court main gymnasium
- Wrestling room
- Fitness center (aerobics/dance space, cardio space, weight training)
- Stadium field and nine-lane track
- Field event competition areas
- Two baseball fields
- Three softball fields
- Eight soccer/football fields
$6.26 million* worth of projects taken out of original high school design because of cost concerns
- 25-yard pool
- Tennis courts
- Two-court auxiliary gymnasium
$24 million proposed 'Sports and Wellness Center' additions
- Two ice rinks (seating for 1,000)
- 50-meter pool
- Four-court auxiliary gymnasium
- Tennis courts
*The district says bids for these projects came in for less than they would have if it were a stand-alone project because contractors were also bidding for parts of the high-school construction project.
Source: Farmington School District
WHAT YOU'D PAY The Farmington School District includes the city of Farmington, as well as parts of Lakeville, Castle Rock Township and Eureka Township. One of the district's selling points for using a bond referendum to finance the project is that the tax burden will be shared by a greater number of people. The district estimates that the project will cost $24 million, paid for with the sale of 20-year bonds. With interest, the total cost of the project would be $41.5 million.
Home value Annual tax impact $200,000 $41 $300,000 $61 $400,000 $82 $500,000 $102 Source: Farmington School District
COSTS TO BUILD AND OPERATE CENTER In information sent to the Minnesota Department of Education, the Farmington School District breaks down what it expects different parts of its proposed sports complex will cost.
Project: 50-meter pool Size: 38,500 square feet Cost: $11.6 million Estimated annual operating cost: $893,000
Project: Four-court auxiliary gymnasium
Size: 37,888 square feet
Cost: $4.8 million
Estimated annual operating cost: $110,000
Project: Hockey complex with two ice sheets Size: 25,250 square feet Cost: $6.75 million Estimated annual operating cost: $392,000
Project: Support bay
Size: 5,730 square feet
Cost: $460,000
Estimated annual operating cost: $6,300
Project: Outdoor amenities, such as tennis courts Size: n/a Cost: $385,000 Estimated annual operating cost: $7,300
Total cost: $24 million
Total estimated annual operational cost: $1.4 million
Source: Farmington School District
MEASURING UP If its proposed $24 million sports complex is approved, here is how Farmington's sports offerings would stack up against those of three recently built south-metro high schools:
Farmington (estimated completion 2009)
Football stadium: Yes
Swimming pool: Yes
Hockey arena: Yes
Shakopee (opens fall 2007)
Football stadium: No
Swimming pool: Yes (at middle school; completion scheduled for August)
Hockey arena: No
Lakeville South (opened fall 2005) Football stadium: Yes Swimming pool: No Hockey arena: Yes (opens fall 2007)
Prior Lake (opened fall 2003
Football stadium:Yes
Swimming pool: Yes (at middle school; completion scheduled for June)
Hockey arena: Yes (opens fall 2007)
FOR MORE INFORMATION
To see more about the proposal for Farmington's 'Sports and Wellness' sports complex, visit the school district's website at www.farmington.k12.mn.us .
