A final Fair Oaks Ranch community center draft goes before City Council Thursday, as the city prepares to move forward after months of haggling over design, size and price.
Representatives from Lopez Salas Architects Inc. will be on hand at the 6:30 p.m. meeting in the Public Safety Training Room at 7286 Dietz Elkhorn to walk council through the remaining specifics of the plan.
The 5,300 square foot facility will become the primary meeting place for city functions. A stage with a dais will sit front-and-center, where the city’s council, committees, boards and commissions can hold their meetings.
Mayor Greg Maxton said the city hopes to have plans and specs out for bid in the coming months, to allow for an estimated 12-month build. The city expects the cost to land in the $2.4-$2.5 million range when finished.
City Manager Scott Huizenga said he expects a move-in date by June of 2026.
“Doing it right is the most important thing,” Maxton said. “It’s all about doing it right, creating a facility that’s right for our community.”
The community center project began with a smaller footprint and lesser cost, but grew through interaction between the council, the architect and the community.
Several town hall meetings were held, where an original design for the center was chastised for not adhering to the general building style of the rest of the city complex. A roof selected for the original center was rejected, and architects went back to the drawing board on at least one occasion.
But Maxton said the city feels it has the right fit after several reviews by council and community members.
Thursday’s meeting, he said, “comes back and gets more into the details; type of flooring, configuration of the dais, details of each room, etc.”
Another function of the community center will be hosting town hall meetings. Currently the city does not have a space large enough to fit as many as 200 guests, instead having to turn to area churches, which “have graciously allowed us to meet there,” the mayor said.
Parking was an issue brought up through the process. The design sticks with 103 spaces of existing campus parking.
“If we expect 200 people (to a function), we’ll make sure we have parking available and not burden the residents on Chartwell,” Maxton said. “We’ve worked with the (Fair Oaks Ranch Elementary) school before. When they do parent- teacher night, they use our campus parking for overflow. So I think it’s all doable.”
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