Untethered from money concerns, pool, rec center plans take step forward

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Liberated from the prospect of having to vote soon on a $77 million funding package, the Sioux Falls City Council Tuesday approved two master plans that mark dramatic expansions of public recreation activities in the city.

The plans lay out details for redeveloping Frank Olson Park in the east and Kuehn Park in the west. Support on the eight-member council was wavering ahead of this week’s meeting because of questions about $77 million in bonding that Mayor Paul TenHaken’s administration wanted this spring to fund the master plan projects. Rather than risk defeat of both the bond issue and the master plans, the administration pushed the funding question into later this year.

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Although the facilities would be public, there were questions about whether they would only be public for those who could afford entry fees – as much as $60 monthly membership passes – used to defray operational costs. But with lower usage fees comes higher operational costs, and there weren’t enough answers for some councilors on the funding side.

But that didn’t stop the council from approving the master plans. Parks and Recreation Director Don Kearney said that approving the plans now would allow the city to maintain a design and construction schedule while allowing the city to pursue naming rights and sponsorship revenues.

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