Public Works Director Steve Lanushevsky updated the council on Aug. 19 about the city’s work to identify a replacement maintenance yard and to integrate that planning with park expansion at Big Rock Ball Fields. Lanushevsky said the city owns four parcels adjacent to Big Rock — the “Daisy” parcels to the north of the existing ball field and the “Fink” parcels to the south — and staff and consultants have focused on one parcel on either side as candidates for a maintenance yard.

Why it matters: Duval’s existing maintenance yard occupies less than a half‑acre downtown and is operationally cramped; the city purchased adjacent conservation properties tied to park expansion and has been evaluating whether one of the newly acquired parcels can host a modern maintenance yard with space for shop bays, equipment storage and future growth.

Maintenance yard update and site considerations
Lanushevsky said a facilities report found the current downtown yard “doesn't work” operationally and that a new site would provide safer circulation, enclosed shop and wash bays, covered equipment parking and stormwater management. Staff reported a grant adjustment that increased available acquisition funding to about $1.9 million for the Big Rock property purchases and said the individual candidate parcels under consideration are roughly 8.25 acres or 8.54 acres. Lanushevsky identified the key con for the preferred south (Fink) parcel: a sewer extension would be required to serve a maintenance yard there.

Costs and finance conversation
Lanushevsky presented preliminary acquisition and budget numbers, noting that the southern parcel price under discussion was about $850,000. Council Member Naplin urged the city to evaluate Growth‑Related Facilities/Capital (GFC) funds and utility capital accounts as primary funding sources rather than relying on ratepayers through operating funds; staff acknowledged GFC and utility capital funds would be considered during the formal budgeting process and that no final funding decision had been made.

Site design and environmental constraints
Consultants from Makers and the city’s design team reviewed preliminary layouts showing shop bays, equipment storage, vehicle circulation and trails that would skirt wetland buffers. The north (Daisy) parcel has some wetland in its back third; the south (Fink) parcel was described as having “nice mature trees” and flatter central area with fewer on‑site wetland constraints but with off‑site wetlands on the eastern edge that could affect design. Staff emphasized preservation of tree canopy where feasible and said trail connections and passive recreation were part of the park expansion plan.

Citywide civic campus and city hall/police site‑selection study
Separately, the consultant team presented an interim site‑selection report on possible locations for a new city hall and police station. The team said the city’s existing police station, city hall and maintenance yard are at or near the end of their useful life and that the city should consider purpose‑built replacements that consolidate functions where appropriate. The consultants outlined three development approaches for city hall and police: a single combined building, a co‑located campus (two buildings on one site with shared elements), or separate sites. They noted combined facilities can yield some operational efficiencies and shared community space but raise security, circulation and essential‑facility construction complexity; a campus approach can balance those tradeoffs but generally needs a larger site footprint.

Two recommended options and next steps
After evaluating city‑owned and private sites, the team identified two leading options for council discussion: (1) a separated approach with city hall on the maintenance‑yard parcel and the police station on the Big Rock southern 2‑acre site; or (2) a consolidated civic campus on the Big Rock 2‑acre city‑owned parcel with both city hall and police located together. The consultants said Duval’s portfolio of city‑owned sites gives flexibility and that a community survey and additional outreach will be used to refine priorities. Council members asked for comparisons to similarly sized cities, models for emergency‑operations centers (EOC), and clearer projected cost breakdowns and financing strategies. Staff said those items would be addressed in forthcoming analysis and that a community survey would be part of the next phase.

What the council asked staff to do
Council requested examples of civic facilities in communities of comparable size; additional detail on emergency operations space and EOC capabilities as part of any new civic facility; and a financing plan that assesses use of GFC/capital utility funds versus other sources. No binding decisions or purchases were made at the meeting; staff requested direction to proceed with further design, community engagement and financial analysis and council signaled readiness to receive the next phase of work.