City staff reported on June 23 that current guaranteed maximum price (GMP) bid packages for the Altra Sports and Aquatic Center came in substantially lower than earlier estimates, giving the city an opportunity to consider additional program elements.

Staff said GMP #1 (pool package and related ancillaries) came in roughly $1,000,000 under the most recent GMP estimate; earlier savings on GMP #1 also left the program tens of millions below earlier worst‑case scenarios. GMP #2 bids (mechanical and electrical heavy packages) were reported about $8,000,000 under the estimate, largely due to strong competition on M/E bids. Taken together staff described approximately $21.7 million in bid savings relative to previously expected costs.

Because of the lower bids, staff asked council for permission to continue design and preconstruction work on a potential west‑side expansion that would add four high‑school‑size courts (or equivalent multipurpose court space), sports training space and related support areas. Staff said a standalone courts building would be priced separately but that some site and infrastructure work would be more efficient if planned now as part of the overall campus. Architects presented a conceptual estimate for a court expansion in the $21–23 million construction cost range (rough order of magnitude) if the council chose to pursue it.

Red River BMX submitted a request for about $700,000–$800,000 in improvements to its adjacent track and facility; staff said approximately half of that request is site work that could be incorporated into existing site contracts and change‑ordered into current bid packages, while building upgrades would be separate. Council members asked that staff present a prioritized list of BMX improvements with refined pricing and fundraising commitments before the city considers funding.

Council voted to allow staff to move forward with bid package 3 planning and to pursue consolidated design/value engineering to see which additions could be incorporated into existing contracts. The council also voted to direct staff to return with a refined, prioritized plan and funding recommendations for the BMX improvements. Both motions passed; two council members recorded dissenting votes on the final approvals (one on the bid package motion, one on the BMX direction) as recorded in the meeting minutes.

Staff will return to council on July 7 with detailed GMP documents, refined cost estimates, and recommended next steps on potential court expansions and BMX improvements.