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City Council delays voting on the fate of sports center
Members hear concerns of architects, enthusiasts
By GEORGE MOORE
After lengthy presentations from an architect, a sports consultant, city staff and after public input, the decision regarding the redevelopment of the sports center was "no decision."
The Cupertino City Council meeting Dec. 17 focused mainly on what option made the most sense for the 30-year-old facility at 21111 Stevens Creek Blvd. The council decided unanimously to defer its decision until after it held an information session to bring all the council members up to speed.
Mark Schatz, an architect who previously worked with the city on its Senior Center said there were only two alternatives to decide upon. One was to bring the existing building up to code and fix any plumbing problems, and the other was to tear it down and build a new facility. Schatz said a new sports center would better serve the long-term interests of the entire community.
"It's already a worn facility, and the operating and maintenance costs associated with it would be higher," Schatz said. "Another reason is any new program activities would have to be shoe-horned into spaces they're not designed for."
Schatz said he believes a 15,000-square-foot building could be built within the $4.4 million budget allocated for the project.
Lauren Livingston, a representative from the Sports Management Group, presented a demand analysis that looked at demographics, growth patterns and popularity of sports programming nationwide.
"It's statistically accurate because it measures what people actually do, not what they say they're going to do," Livingston said.
According to Livingston, one of the fastest growing activities in America is the climbing wall--a mountain façade where experienced climbers can hone their skills or novices can test their wills. Therese Smith, director of parks and recreation, said because of the high costs involved with building a climbing wall, she recommended it as an alternate bid item.
Smith said the city has a couple of options for the sports center project--Follow the vision statement and replace the facility, or expand its uses to meet those with the most demand and add a gym in the future when funding becomes available.
Smith recommended enlarging the fitness area because of its high revenue generation, adding an aerobics room, a child watch room and eventually youth areas. She said the teen commission suggested a game room with table tennis and pool tables, and a place with couches to hang out. Smith said the plans did not include building a larger building, but would mean the elimination of both of its racquetball courts.
The suggestion didn't bode well with racquetball enthusiasts, some of whom have been members of the center since it was built. More than a dozen racquetball supporters pleaded with council members to keep the courts, citing the sport's health benefits and the lack of court availability elsewhere.
When the time came for council members to discuss the options for the facility, Councilwoman Dolly Sandoval requested more time to look at the big picture and questioned whether the proposed Teen Center would be part of the site. Councilwoman Sandra James said the Teen Center is still in its "dream stage" and should be isolated from any sports center renovation decisions.
Councilman Patrick Kwok said he would like to satisfy everyone's needs with the project and had a lot of questions that still need to be answered. James said they don't have much time because of legal issues, including compliance with the american With Disabilities Act and current earthquake codes that have to be met. She empathized with the racquetball players and wants to keep at least one of the courts.
"I could move forward with my decision tonight, but there are a couple [people] here tonight that need more information before they can make a decision," James said.
Mayor Richard Lowenthal said he thinks the council needs a work session to digest all that they have heard, look at the facts and come up with a plan. He said he thought the whole building needs to come down, but it still needs to be determined what to do with a new facility.
Council members voted unanimously to hold a study session in late January to discuss the new information presented and bring new members Patrick Kwok and Dolly Sandoval up to date with the history of the project.
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Cupertino, California Since 1947
