Coralville moves ahead with $50 million recreation center project

CORALVILLE — The city of Coralville is moving forward with plans for a new recreation center, to be built east of the existing facility in ST Morrison Park, by finalizing funding sources and starting the construction contract process.

The new build plan is estimated to cost $50-55.4 million. The 109,700 square-foot space would include three gymnasiums, an elevated track, a spa, and three pools: a competition pool with spectator seating, a leisure pool and a recreation and community lap pool.

The current rec center, which welcomed more than 150,000 visitors last year, was built more than 50 years ago. The most recent work on the building — HVAC, electrical and a new roof — was completed 20 years ago.

  Buy Photo

The city completed a master plan for the center in 2004, but it was never implemented. Last year, after being approached by the Iowa City school district for a discussion about the pool, the city began drafting a new master plan.

The Iowa City school board has expressed interest in partnering with Coralville on the new rec center, indicating it would provide as much as $14 million for the project.

The current rec center pool was built more than 35 years ago as a partnership between the city and the school district, and the school district’s four swim programs use the rec center pool. The district also pays about one-third the operating costs. The shared use would continue with a new rec center.

  Buy Photo

The plan is to keep the existing center open throughout construction of the new building. It would then be demolished once construction is complete.

Funding sources for recreation center

The city plans to sell general obligation bonds — essentially, take out a loan — of up to $45 million to pay for costs associated with the rec center project, including demolition of the existing center and site updates.

The bonds will be repaid through property taxes. The city estimates the bonds would raise property taxes $0.79 per $1,000 of assessed taxable value.

That means the owner of a house with an assessed value of $200,000 would pay an approximately $74.94 more per year in property taxes.

Additionally, a 1 percent local-option sales tax will go before voters in the November general election.

Should the local option sales tax be approved by voters the city will use that revenue to pay down the bond.

A simple majority is required to pass the tax, which would go into effect July 1, 2026.

Under state law, 50 percent of local-option sales tax revenue must be put toward property tax relief. Coralville would use the other 50 percent to fund the rec center and other city initiatives.

All local-option sales taxes are collected at the county level and then distributed to participating cities using a formula from the Iowa Department of Revenue that takes into account population and property valuations. That means the expected revenue each city can collect from the tax depends on which cities’ voters approve the tax.

Coralville city staff, using retail sales from FY24, have presented revenue scenarios that ranged from $3.6-7.3 million per year.

Construction Manager at risk build process

To construct the rec center, the city plans to use a construction manager at risk (CMAR) process for the building. The construction manager at risk process became available as an option for public entities in 2022.

The process allows for a contract with a construction manager, who will manage all subcontractors and other work, as well as working directly with the architect on the project. A construction manager at risk process is often used for projects with a long construction time and the need for several types of specialized work.

The city has already begun the process by issuing a request for qualifications from prospective construction companies.

“If they're qualified, they can give us their request for proposal. Basically, they're going to give us a little bit more detail and the pricing. We get the chance to interview them and then get contract awarded, and they'll get started right away …” Recreation Director Sherri Proud said at Tuesday’s city council work session.

The city will require prospective contractors to submit qualifications such as experience on similar projects, references, and financial information. Companies are required to be able to carry bonding for one and a quarter times the estimated cost of the project.

Once the final contract is awarded, the construction company will be liable for any costs that exceed the agreed upon price of the project.

The city plans to put the request for proposals in front of the city council in mid November. If the project stays on the proposed timeline it could be mostly complete by May 2028.

Comments: megan.woolard@thegazette.com

Get a weekly roundup of Johnson County news by signing up for my Johnson County Update newsletter.