Englewood City officials said the city’s parks and recreation bond sale drew 13 bidders and will close next Tuesday, providing funds for the Renew and Recreate parks program and moving multiple park and facility projects toward design and construction.

Kevin Eagles, Englewood’s director of finance, said the sale drew more bidders than expected and that the city expects to have the money “Tuesday or Wednesday” after closing. Eagles said the interest rate on the sale was about 4.13 percent and the total borrowing cost is about $64,000,000, roughly $10,000,000 less than earlier projections of about $72,000,000.

The bonds will finance two facilities and improvements at eight parks under the Renew and Recreate campaign. City staff told the committee they expect 2027 to be the year with the most active construction on larger projects as financing schedules and design timelines are finalized.

Why it matters: The lower borrowing cost reduces long-term interest payments and gives the city more flexibility to fund project designs and construction. Staff also noted some individual projects are already coming in over early cost estimates, requiring close cost management during final design.

What city staff reported
- Cushing Park: Staff said Cushing is “shovel ready,” a contractor has been selected and construction is planned to begin in June once contracts are finalized. The city will present related contracts to City Council on May 19 for approval, staff said.
- Emerson and Rotolo parks: Emerson’s design was described as complete (referred to as “100 percent”), with Rotolo slightly behind (about 95 percent). Staff said both will proceed through standard procurement once final drawings are stamped.
- Bellevue Park: The project is in a flood-plain area where the existing barn sits; staff said this year’s work will include a floodplain study and site options and warned that the study could add up to roughly $500,000 in design costs.
- Pirates Cove: The presentation listed a $6,900,000 budget for Pirates Cove improvements; staff described removing the existing competitive pool and replacing it with a mix of family amenities (a multi-lane recreation pool, interactive features, slides with runouts to lower the rider-height requirement, a pavilion for roughly 150 people and rentable cabanas). Chris Davidson, the city’s aquatics manager, said the goal is to expand usable attractions and noted planned equipment replacements and recent capital work, including replacement of the Lazy River boiler.
- Inglewood Recreation Center (facility budget listed in presentation as $7,000,000): Staff said planned work focuses on locker-room renovations, new back-of-site pickleball courts (on the footprint of an existing sand-volleyball court), a pavilion, accessibility improvements to the second floor (lift or elevator), and pool-deck and pool-gutter tile replacement; some items are listed as add alternates (lighting for pickleball courts, filter replacements).

Procurement and design teams
Staff said all design teams have now been selected and that BHA was chosen as the design team for the Pirates Cove project. City staff emphasized that some contracts fall below the council approval threshold but will still be presented on May 19 for transparency.

Budget and schedule caveats
City staff warned that several design estimates have come back higher than early budgets and that some designs will need value engineering to stay within the bond budget. Staff also said irrigation work is being tracked separately and that irrigation bids received so far were lower than expected (examples given: an irrigation bid for Emerson of about $65,000 and a similar bid for Cushing). City finance staff said they will manage cash flow so funds are available to each project when needed.

Next steps and timeline
City staff said they will present contracts and project updates to City Council on May 19 and begin construction at Cushing shortly afterward. The committee’s next oversight meeting was scheduled for May 22 at 2:00 p.m., with staff continuing both in-person and Teams participation.

Ending
City staff asked oversight members to expect more detailed schedules as final design packages are completed and to anticipate greater construction activity in 2027, with timelines to be refined as permits and contracts are executed.