From Page 1

In a Feb. 23 letter to Dockter, Kraus-Anderson Construction Executive Mark Kotten said, “This is an exciting opportunity for Kraus-Anderson to contribute to the future of the Cottage Grove community. Our entire team is thrilled to work with you to listen, educate, assess the need and respond to the demand for a new community center. Our knowledge, process and creativity will result in a bigger and better building at a lower cost because we have done this before for communities just like Cottage Grove. We understand what it takes to build these centers to last.”

The matter was included on the City Council consent agenda and there was no discussion the matter at the meeting.

The city released the following information about the project in January.

On January 9, the City Council moved forward with placing a Community Center Referendum Question on the November 2021 ballot. Included in the concept will be a 50-meter outdoor pool, which provides opportunities to partner with swim clubs and secure potential state funding for part of the project. Council Members weighed cost-benefit analysis data when deciding on the outdoor option, which is much less expensive to build and allows for a 75 to 100% cost recovery. Indoor aquatic centers typically only allow for cost recovery abilities in the 30 to 50% range. Annual operating losses for indoor centers are also more than double those found with outdoor facilities. The outdoor aquatic center model and concept is based, in part, on a facility recently constructed in the City of New Hope. The Cottage Grove proposal also includes water slides, a lazy river, zip lines and shallow water play features. The Community Center concept voters will decide upon would be located off Keats Avenue, across the street from the entrance of Cottage Grove Ravine Regional Park and would include the following amenities:

• Indoor Playground

• Community or Multi-Purpose Rooms

• Sports Dome with Walking Track

• Performance Space

• Early Childhood Family Education

• CGAA Office and Storage Space

• Outdoor Landscaped Areas

• Outdoor Aquatic Center with a 50-Meter Pool The estimated project cost is $39.2 million and City staff members are exploring potential partnerships and use agreements to minimize the cost to taxpayers. As those conversations come together, the City will provide more concrete data on potential taxpayer impact in the coming weeks. If the referendum passes, there will not be a tax impact for residents until 2023.