ERCC abandons plans for school site: Statement cites opposition from school board, administration; other locations will be pursued
by Tom Coombe -
Plans for a community recreation complex in Ely have shifted abruptly, as supporters have pulled their request to locate the facility on the school campus.
Members of the Ely Regional Community Complex board of directors notified school officials Wednesday of their intention, formally withdrawing a request that split school board members and generated community opposition.
In an unsigned statement that was also distributed to local media, the ERCC board indicated “even with the potential for a positive vote at the next board meeting we have determined that our path forward would be very difficult without the full support of the administration and school board.”
It’s unclear when the ERCC board arrived at a decision it said was unanimous.
ERCC chariman Jeff Sundell declined further comment Thursday.
Also unclear is what comes next for the plan to build a complex as large as 50,000 square feet and cost as much as $12 million.
The location on the west side of the school campus was ranked first by the ERCC board, but the group has looked at other locations including the old city garage site near Central Avenue and property near the Ely hospital.
Just hours before school board members voted 4-2 on Dec. 11 to table the issue, ERCC leaders went before the city projects committee and said they might be returning if the school site doesn’t work out.
The ERCC board has not publicly indicated what it will do next, but the statement to the school sheds partial light.
It says “As we move forward to select a site for the planned facilities and programs, we request that the district continue to have representation on our board so that we can meet the needs of Ely kids as effectively as possible.”
The ERCC’s formal withdrawal turns a page in a saga that has engulfed school board members for more than a year.
School board members have wrestled with the idea at a series of meetings, first seeking further information about the proposal and then listening to public sentiment - largely in opposition - at the Dec. 11 board meeting.
School board member Heidi Mann said the issue is “tearing the community apart,” and board members couldn’t come to a resolution either to support the project on school grounds, or to reject the ERCC request.
Longtime school board chairman Ray Marsnik, who pressed members to make a decision and voiced opposition to the ERCC proposal, offered a brief statement Thursday.
“I am glad that this issue has finally been resolved,” said Marsnik.
The decision also frees the school district to move in its own direction on possible facility upgrades, including more details on informal discussion to build a new gymnasium on campus and perhaps a structure that would link the Memorial and Washington buildings.
The ERCC, meanwhile, will
look elsewhere to locate a complex that, as now proposed, would include a swimming pool, gymnasium, walking track, weight and fitness center, meeting space and other amenities.
The project has been in the works for several years and was buoyed this year by the announcement of a $5 million anonymous grant, an an additional $1 million matching grant.
State Sen. Tom Bakk has also been publicly supportive of the project, indicating that the grant awards would boost prospects that the complex could get a matching amount in state bonding funds.
Supporters have contended that the facility could be built without local tax dollars, and while their projections showed an operating yearly loss of about $200,000, they hoped to use endowment funds to offset part of the deficit and had proposed the school district pay a yet-to-be negotiated usage fee for the facility.
The proposal has stirred opposition, particularly from those who say it will compete with private entities such as Ely fitness and dance business Studio North.
Owner Nichole Boitz told school board members that the complex, which would rely on monthly memberships in part to offset expenses, would unfairly compete with her privately-run business.
Other opponents made similar arguments, and project finances were also a source of contention.
Several people questioned whether the complex would generate revenue as predicted in a project pro forma, with predicted memberships of over 900 paying monthly fees of $30 to $60. Others said they were worried a public entity such as the school district or the city could end up owning the facility, particularly if the project received state bonding funds.
Security, parking, traffic, the school district’s needs for future possible expansion, as well as the size and scope of the proposed ERCC facility were all questioned during public comments before the school board.
School board members were asked to go on record to support the school location and enter into an engagement of sorts with the ERCC. A watered-down version of support failed on a 3-3 tie vote and board members eventually decided to table the issue.
ERCC officials and other supporters were consistently on record in support of the school location, citing a similar project at Grand Marais and touting the facility’s central location and easier access for children.
Based on responses to a statistically valid public survey conducted in 2015 and subsequent public meetings, plans for the ERCC currently call for:
• Aquatic facilities, including a six-lane pool with a zero-entry area to aid therapy, encompassing 14,000 square feet;
• Gymnasium - two cross courts, 7,000 square feet;
• An elevated running/walking track, which can be accommodated without additional space;
• Aerobic area, 1,200 square feet;
• Cardio/wellness area, 2,500 square feet;
• Multipurpose room, 1,500 square feet;
• Additional space of 2,400 square feet, which in Grand Marais was used for child care space, but ERCC officials stressed “this need has not yet been tested within our community;”
• Locker rooms, 5,500 square feet;
• Administration/meeting space, 1,800 square feet;
• Vending/gathering space, 400 square feet;
• Lobby/corridor/restrooms, 8,000 square feet;
• Mechanical spaces, 5,000 square feet;
• Climbing wall, 700 square feet.
