Camden County work session narrows scope for multiuse sports complex after single bid and financing concerns

County administrator opened a work session presentation on the proposed multiuse sports complex renovation, summarizing a conceptual site plan that includes realigning the entrance road, enlarging the asphalt parking area, installing a new restroom and playground, building a maintenance area, and adding irrigation, lighting, ball-stop netting and new turf for the fields (00:05:32).

The county'funded design shown to commissioners calls for roughly 213 total parking spaces after adding about 73 aggregate overflow spaces where the Kwanzaa huts now sit, new sidewalks and site canopy, and ADA accessibility. Staff said the total project estimate on the plan is just over $4.8 million; engineers and consultants (Davenport & Company and Thomas & Hutton on the materials presented) also provided three financing scenarios for a $4,000,000 loan that vary by repayment structure and early payoff timing tied to anticipated SPLOST proceeds (00:09:30).

"We put out the project to bid, and we just got our bids back. We only received one bid," the county administrator told the board (00:08:19). Commissioners were shown that the single bid came in higher than the conceptual numbers and were offered two…