I have questions surrounding the proposed South City Park Sports Complex and I’m not sure who the owner of the project plan and implementation is to properly address them. So here is my list of questions. I would appreciate it if the leaders of the City, ODDD, SLED and the Parish would address them.
1. Who is the responsible entity for this project? The city or ODDD? Who will lead the project and the operations once complete?
2. Does this project fit in with the Opelousas Main Street Master Plan?
3. What is the goal of building the facility?
a. Is it to support athletics within the city, establish sustainable youth programs for the kids in Opelousas? If so, who will implement these programs and how will they be financially sustained?
b. Is there a mutual aid agreement with the school board to help support these programs and will this reduce the cost of athletic programs for area schools? Does the school board support this project?
c. Are there plans for after school programs/summer programs that will provide area youth a positive outlet with mentorships that can help them to succeed?
d. If not to support local programs, how will this facility compete with similar facilities that are within a one-hour drive of Opelousas? How will we attract events to this facility? Will city/parish schools be required to compete for use of the facility financially with outside entities? How is this going to work?
4. What is the economic impact of this facility?
a. How will the ongoing maintenance and management cost be paid? Will the facility be self-sustaining? I think a facility like this would take a minimum of 1million dollars a year to operate and maintain, which means it would need to average an income of 20K per week to achieve. Will this require additional millages or taxes to support the ongoing operation?
b. How will it affect local businesses and have they been updated on the potential impacts to their businesses? What research has been performed to help business owners and the general public to prepare for the changes anticipated to occur once the project is complete?
c. Who has the business plan, and can it be published? What are the short term, medium term and long term operational goals for the facility? Has an economic impact study been performed, and can it be published?
d. Will the operation of the facility provide enough funding to complete additional phases of the South City Park complex? Will funds generated be shared with North City Park for upgrades and maintenance?
5. Will the project create good paying jobs, and will those jobs be sourced inside or outside of the community?
6. Has the infrastructure in the area been evaluated to assure that it can support the additional traffic and use in the immediate area? If upgrades are necessary are those costs included in the total of the project?
7. Bringing in a third party with management experience to manage and maintain the project and facility makes sense. How will they make money and at what cost to us? At the end of the project will we have a well-maintained facility or will we be starting over again. What if they don’t meet their contractual obligations, will we have the ability to hold them accountable?
This is not a complete list of questions by any means but, answers to these questions would go a long way to help me and others determine if we can/will support this project. Having a showcase facility can drive positive change in a community. Having a facility to be used by area kids can help to address some of the social issues we face as a city.
If the 7 “P’s” (Prior proper planning prevents piss poor performance) have been addressed and the positive results out rank the potential risks, I would support this project wholeheartedly. So far, I haven’t seen enough answers to these questions to throw my support behind the project. Looking forward to hearing our Civic leadership answers.
Sincerely
Gretchen Erlingson
