A plan to expand recreational opportunities in Savage continues to move forward, with a neighborhood meeting on the indoor sports facility scheduled for February 2.

The meeting will give neighbors of the facility an opportunity to see the latest site plan for the project, which will be located on land recently attained through a park dedication agreement to expand Savage Community Park.  Although it was initially thought that the existing tennis and basketball courts would have to be relocated to accommodate the sports dome, current plans indicate there is enough room on the site for them to be preserved.  The site plan also shows that the dome will be as far away from the closest residential property line as possible - which is approximately 360 feet.

A Council-appointed task force recommended that Savage Community Park be selected as the preferred location for the indoor sports facility, after a careful review of all city- and school-owned properties in Savage. The task force included two members of each City advisory commission and one representative from each of the three local youth sports organizations.

If all goes according to the City’s timeline, Savage’s sports dome would be ready to host practices and games for both youth and adult teams and leagues by Nov. 1, 2012. The seasonal facility would have three indoor turf fields that could be used from November through March for field sports, and three batting cages that could be moved when not in use. The facility also would be able to accommodate activities such as skill development drills and league play for football, basketball, softball, baseball and track. An adjacent building would house restrooms, a lobby and storage for the dome from April through October.

The concept of an indoor sports facility was brought to the City of Savage two years ago by the Burnsville Athletic Association (BAC). City officials told the BAC that more groups needed to be involved in order for the concept to be viable. In August of 2010, the BAC, Prior Lake Athletics for Youth (PLAY), and the Prior Lake/Savage Soccer Club formally asked the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission to consider the idea of building an indoor sports facility in Savage. The recommendation was met with support from the PRNRC, and subsequently, the City Council.

“We know there is a great demand for programming for youth sports in the wintertime,” said City Administrator Barry Stock.

A financial study has estimated that rental revenues would cover the expense of constructing the facility. Officials are in the process of getting commitments from BAC, PLAY, the Soccer Club and other organizations to use the sports dome after it’s built. Should existing conditions change such that the financial estimates don’t hold true, the City would use Park Reserve, Debt Service and/or Community Investment funds to pay the debt before raising taxes to do so.

Although he admits there’s some financial risk involved in building an indoor sports facility, Stock said the project is consistent with how the City has responded to other parks and recreational demands and needs.

“A city’s role is to provide services for its community members that aren’t being met elsewhere,” Stock said. “The indoor sports facility would fill a gap that has existed not only within our recreational network but the entire southwest metro area for some time. This project would enable our youth sports teams to do what they love here at home instead of always traveling outside the city limits to find it.”

In addition to being available for use by youth and adult athletes, the indoor sports facility also would be available to the general public for indoor walking during the day.