Sandpoint launches recreation surveys
Bonner County Daily Bee | UPDATED 3 years, 2 months AGO
SANDPOINT — The city launched two community surveys this week to inform residents of its recreational planning efforts.
The first survey is seeking public input on future programming at the James E. Russell Sports Center in Travers Park.
In the spring of 2022, the city received a $7.5 million legacy donation from James F. and Ginny Russell to construct the James E. Russell Sports Center in Travers Park, Sandpoint City Administrator Jennifer Stapleton said. A design-build contract was awarded to Emerick Construction earlier this summer and with its partners at ALSC Architects, the design-build team is close to completing the final construction design for the facility.
The sports center is envisioned to be a two-phase project, with a first-phase main pavilion to be constructed in 2023 with the donation from the Russell family. Stapleton said it will include functionally complete tennis/pickleball courts, lockers, indoor/outdoor accessible restrooms, and a community room. A future second phase is envisioned to house two collegiate-sized basketball courts with an overlay of four volleyball courts and serve multi-purpose use. This future phase is dependent upon additional funding.
The city has contracted with BerryDunn to review the facility design and develop a staffing, operations, and management plan for the facility. This will include a five-year business plan and operational pro-forma for both phases. The public survey at opentownhall.com/12275 will inform this effort.
The final construction design of the facility will be announced in early November and is still expected to be under construction in 2023.
A second survey at opentownhall.com/12276 will inform the city’s recreation master plan for the Little Sand Creek Watershed. The city adopted an overall watershed management plan in 2021 and the recreation master plan is the final element to be completed, Stapleton said.
The Little Sand Creek Watershed is comprised of approximately 7,400 acres around Schweitzer Mountain Resort and the city’s water utility is the majority landowner in the area owning 53% of the watershed. The watershed is critical to the well-being of the public as one of the community’s two primary drinking water sources. The watershed also provides natural resources and recreational opportunities for the public including biking, hiking and more.