Staff Recommends Council approve the Resolution (Attachment A) adopting the Conceptual Design Phase Final Report of the Billings Multi-generational Recreation Center.

As identified in the City of Billings Comprehensive Parks and Recreation Master Plan (adopted September 2017), one of the community's highest priority is an indoor multi-generational recreation center.  In December 2021 Council adopted the South Billings Aquatic & Recreation Center Master Plan and Feasibility Study.  Council gave direction to staff to proceed with the Conceptual Design Phase and approved a contract with A & E Design to provide these design services.  The goal of this process has been to create a multi-generational recreation facility that best reflects the needs of our community, best practices for programming a recreation center, site design, and a defined budget.  The consulting design team has worked in close collaboration with City Administration, Parks and Recreation and a Core Committee of community representatives for the last year to create this concept design. The process has been inclusive and collaborative to ensure that all ideas are explored and tested. The committee has defined the following primary objectives:

1. The facility must be visionary and make an impact on our community – if we’re going to build it, let’s build it right
2. The facility needs to create a balance of meeting the needs of our local residents while also attracting sports tourism opportunities.
3. The program spaces within the facility need to reflect what the residents will support and what they have defined as the essential unmet needs in our community.
4. The facility should seek to maximize revenue generation.  

In order to ensure the process was inclusive and genuinely reflective of our community, the team reached out to the Billings residents through community engagement, meetings, and a statistically valid public survey. The residents’ input has defined the vision for this recreation center. The statistically valid survey results indicate the most desired spaces with unmet needs in our community:

1. Indoor Family Leisure Activity Pool
2. Indoor Exercise / Lap Swimming Pool
3. Fitness Spaces (open fitness and group exercise studios)
4. Gymnasium – Court Sports
5. Indoor Walk/Jog track
6. Indoor Ice Skating Rink
Updates on this work were provided to council at Work Sessions in May and October 2022.  Following the Council presentation in October 2022, the core team made several refinements to the design to ensure it captures the comprehensive vision for our community’s recreation center.   The team has finished the Conceptual Design Phase of the Billings Multi-Generational Recreation Center is complete, See Attachment B. The following objectives have been completed:

1. Facility design, architectural character, and site configuration
2. Capital construction budget
3. Operational Pro Forma to define cost recovery estimates

 

Council may: Approve the Resolution adopting the Conceptual Design Phase Final Report of the Billings Multi-generational Recreation Center, or; Not approve the Resolution and provide staff with additional guidance.

By adopting this study there will be no fiscal effects.