College Station city council members have finalized a more than $90 million dollar bond package for voters to consider this November, where voters will decide five separate requests.
Councilmembers spent most of their time during a special meeting on Wednesday deciding which of three sports and tourism options voters will consider. A unanimous council chose a $30 million dollar package of ballfield additions and replacements.
- From a city of College Station blog, the bond will finance phase two of Texas Independence Ballpark on Rock Prairie Road East with the addition of four additional synthetic diamond fields to complete the complex’s master plan.
- At Veterans Park, six natural turf fields on the Harvey Road side of the park will be sand capped and surfaced with hybrid bermuda grasses to improve drainage and expand available playing time.
A separate bond question involves $22 million to improve and redevelop the following College Station parks facilities:
- Bachmann Little League and Senior League/Soccer Buildings: Existing restroom and storage facilities will be demolished and will be replaced with new buildings that will provide expanded restrooms, concessions areas, and storage for user groups.
- Pickleball/Futsal Courts: The project in Anderson Park will install three outdoor courts for pickleball, futsal, and other sports with full LED lighting, lines, and surfacing. The project may also include additional parking.
- Bee Creek and Central Park Tennis Court Replacement: The project will reconstruct the Bee Creek Park and Central Park tennis courts with new playing surfaces, court lighting, fencing, netting, and windscreens.
- Lincoln Center Area Improvements: The project will provide restrooms at Tarrow Park and add pedestrian improvements to improve connectivity and accessibility to the park and restrooms.
- Central Park Operations Shop: Demolishing the existing structure, which has not been expanded since 1982, and replacing it with an expanded building to house maintenance and forestry equipment and create secure storage, workshops, restrooms, and office space for Central Park, South District, and forestry crews.
- Thomas Park Redevelopment: The project may include a new pavilion with restrooms, historical/memorial elements, additional lighting, shade areas, and what the city describes as “unique playscapes/recreational elements for a wide range of ages and a more diverse and active community.”
There is a separate bond question for Thomas Park, asking voters to build a new swimming pool at a cost of almost $4 million dollars.
Another bond question asks voters to approve $18 million to build fire station number seven.
And College Station voters are asked to approve a bond of $16 million dollars to widen Rock Prairie Road from Baylor Scott & White hospital to Fitch.
College Station residents are reminded that the voter registration deadline is October 11. Early voting takes place October 24 through November 4.