HOLLAND (WHTC) — Holland City Council reviewed details of options for renovating the Civic Center during Wednesday’s regular meeting.
Council won’t make any formal plans until March 30, at which point, budget decisons will be made.
Since November, a council-appointed Civic Center committee comprised of city officials, farmers market leaders, residents have met at least eight times to hammer out ideas. A survey of residents garnered nearly 3,000 responses, with 70 percent voting to renovate, rather than demolish, the 62-year-old building.
Among the changes suggested:
– Renovating the gym’s entrances, backboards, seating; upgrading HVAC; improving acoustics, stage rigging, lighting, and sound; installing new telescoping bleachers and bringing the buildng up to code.
– The North Hall is targeted for expansion, which would create an upper deck floor with space for pickelball and other recreational games, as well as a year-round indoor market space and multiuse classrooms.
– Functional improvements include an updated lobby / family room area, new restrooms accessible from inside and outside the bulding; updated offices and locker rooms and accessibility features bringing the bulding into compliance with the 25-year-old Americans With Disabilties Act.
The Civic Center could get an Eighth Street balcony overlook and construciton could allwo for future rooftop access.
Paying for it all could require pursuing state grants — and least one could net the city up to $2 milllion if construction meets energy savings credit standards — as well as sponsoring or naming the kitchen, trees or selling paver bricks. The city could pursue grants for creating green space or persuade individuals or corporations to make large donations.
Mayor Nancy Deboer indicated during the meeting that construction would likely start this fall. The project will take about 14 months to complete, with a ribbon cutting set for the fall of 2017.
One steering committee member, Nathan Bocks, told the board he wanted more out of the Civic Center.
“Regardless of the plan you choose, above all, get it done,” Bocks said.
Another committee member, Brian Polet, one of two representatives of marketplace vendors, initally campaigned for the building to be demolished. On Wednesday, he told the council the city should let residents vote on any plan chosen, as was done for past city projects.
Two Boy Scouts, Benjamin Logan, 12, and Josiah Logan, 10, attended Wednesday’s meeting to qualify for communication patches. Each listened carefully to the discussions and took notes. Josiah said he though the meeting was boring while Benjamin deemed it exciting. Both boys said they liked hearing about the Civic Center plans.
Holland resident Felip Ballesteros questioned whether Civic Center plans were as inclusive as city officials claimed, nodding at the mostly-white audience as he said, “Very few people of color actually kind of come and use this platform (public comment opportunities at city council meetings) to voice concerns.”
