By Misty Castile | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – Caddo Parish voters will be asked in November to authorize $60 million for a proposed sports complex even though commissioners acknowledged Monday that the project’s location, acreage and final mix of indoor and outdoor facilities have not been decided.
The questions surfaced during the Parish Commission work session Monday, as Commissioners Chris Kracman, Roy Burrell and John Atkins sought more details about what voters would be authorizing Nov. 3.
Kracman asked Administrator Erica Bryant whether playing fields, walking trails and other outdoor amenities discussed as possible additions were included in the bond initiative.
“The bond initiative is mostly the indoor facility,” Bryant said.
She said outdoor fields and a loop could be included if they fit within the project budget once the facility is designed.
Burrell then questioned whether the scope of the project had expanded beyond what was included in the feasibility study.
“I’m a little confused as to what’s going to be in the building versus what will be outside because it appears that we’ve gone from an indoor facility and now we are attaching an outdoor section to it,” Burrell said.
He asked whether the outdoor components were part of the overall plan or additions made after the feasibility study.
Bryant said the parish initially looked at whether it could support a sports complex and considered whether additional components could be added later. The project would begin primarily with indoor sports such as basketball, volleyball, wrestling and other activities, she said.
Outdoor fields could be added in a later phase or potentially during the first phase if the budget allows.
Burrell also questioned discussions about potentially acquiring substantially more land than the approximately 12.5 acres identified for the indoor facility.
Bryant said the original proposal showed the acreage needed to build the indoor facility, while later discussions with the commission’s Economic Development Committee considered securing enough land to allow the complex to expand.
“You never want to put something in a property and then you’re landlocked and you can’t add to the facility,” Bryant said.
She said additional land could allow the parish to add facilities, amenities or parking later.
Burrell said residents had noticed the difference between the 12.5 acres in the proposal and public discussions involving as much as 200 acres.
“The question came up from several people, professional folks who asked about it,” Burrell said.
Bryant said the parish is not scouting specific properties and would not do so until voters decide whether to support the initiative. She also confirmed that the original proposal provided the acreage necessary for the indoor facility.
Atkins focused on how the proposed $60 million expenditure would be financed.
He asked parish officials to send him the debt service model for the project “just so I can have a better feel for how that’s going to work.”
The commission president responded to the questions by stressing that voters will not be deciding the location or final design of the complex in November.
“Where the facility is going to be located, what all the facility will eventually entail is not on the ballot November the 3rd,” he said.
Instead, he said, voters are being asked to authorize the parish to spend $60 million on the project.
“What’s on the ballot November the 3rd is to receive authorization from our constituents, our citizens, our voters to spend $60 million on this project,” he said.
Additional discussions and commission approvals would be required after the election if voters approve the proposal.
The president also said the project’s location, configuration and final amenities remain undecided.
“What we unveiled on last week was simply a rendering,” he said. “A rendering is not a blueprint.”
He said questions about the financing were particularly relevant because money is what voters are being asked to decide.
“It’s about the money,” he said. “Nothing else is on the ballot on November the 3rd.”
Later in the discussion, the president described the concept presented to the public as “essentially aspirational” and said the parish does not yet have a blueprint.
Bryant cannot legally sign a contract to purchase land without authorization from the commission, he said, and further decisions would come only if voters first approve the proposal.
The parish plans three public meetings on the proposal beginning Sept. 8. The meetings are scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Sept. 8 at LSU Shreveport, Sept. 9 at Government Plaza and Sept. 10 at Greenwood Acres.