Mayor Murphy has released the following update on the status of the Valpo Sports & Recreation Campus project:
The concept for the sports and recreation campus has always been a project for the community and by the community. We collectively shared our wish lists and enlisted public input through multiple meetings and charettes. We then enlisted the talents of valued consultants to reflect our ideas on paper, including value engineering for quality, sustainability and affordability. When bid proposals were recently received and reviewed, the estimated cost to build the campus exceeded all prior reasonable estimates. What began as an ambitious, but attainable, $30-million project inflated to exceed $37 million. Unfortunately, Valparaiso is not the only community in the region to experience projects significantly surpassing estimates.
Although construction on the park could begin, I believe -- along with the City Council, Parks leadership, Redevelopment Commission and our consultants -- that a speedy groundbreaking would not be responsible. We believe that the best option is to delay construction until costs have stabilized and a new vision and process can be refined.
I am proud to lead a team and a community that dreams BIG, but also keeps its eye on fiscal responsibility. I’m confident we will find a great balance, just like we’ve done at Central Park Plaza, ValPlayso and throughout our signature parks. We can all be assured of another destination park the Valparaiso community will celebrate. I look forward to sharing future plans with this board and with the community in the coming months.
