Commission approves 99,169‑sq. ft. community recreation center/Hard Courts project; commission asks staff to revisit accessible parking count

The Planning & Zoning Commission approved a site plan amendment April 8 to allow construction of a 99,169-square-foot community recreation center (Hard Courts) adjacent to 360 Westfield Avenue that will host eight basketball courts convertible into sixteen volleyball courts and related facilities.

Staff reported the site (about 8.9 acres) is zoned M2P Planned Industrial, conforms to the future land-use map, and is consistent with downtown redevelopment objectives and the City of Waterloo’s Sports Town USA and 2030 vision. The proposal shows 281 on-site parking spaces (including eight accessible stalls). Staff noted the building’s occupancy load yields a code parking demand of roughly 714 stalls; staff and the project team described shared, off‑hour public and private parking in downtown (about 1,900 stalls within walking distance when combined) and precedent at comparable facilities such as Young Arena.

Commissioners pressed staff on the accessible/handicap parking count and whether the project should provide more on-site accessible stalls given the building size. City planner Schroeder noted the minimum accessible-stall number in the ordinance/ building code for lots of this size is met by the plan but that staff and the project team recognized the unusual scale and shared parking model. Commissioners amended the motion to ask staff and the project team to revisit the number of accessible stalls; the commission approved the site-plan amendment with the condition that the final site plan meet all applicable city codes and regulations.

Staff and the project team were directed to provide drainage plans and SWPPP documentation to engineering for review as soon as possible.