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Augusta County board approves $12,000 feasibility study for proposed recreation center after debate
Summary
Board approved hiring Balzer and Associates for a $12,000 feasibility study for a proposed ~100,000 sq. ft. recreation facility; one supervisor argued the county should wait for the comprehensive plan, but the motion to table failed and the study passed 5-2.
County staff proposed hiring Balzer and Associates to produce three or four concept options for an approximately 100,000-square-foot recreation facility adjacent to the county’s Parks & Recreation area. Mr. Fitzgerald told the board the consultant would evaluate facility types, multiuse fields and related amenities, and that the requested contract amount is $12,000, to be split four ways among Beverly Manor, South River, Wayne and pasture infrastructure accounts.
A supervisor who spoke in favor described the request as a conceptual first step and moved to allow a study to see what opportunities exist. Another board member urged postponement until after the county’s comprehensive plan is finalized, calling it “getting the cart before the horse” and expressing concern about committing funds before the plan defines land use and needs.
The motion to table the request failed for lack of a second and an apparent mis-vote was acknowledged on the record. The board then voted to proceed with the feasibility study; the transcript records the result as 5 in favor and 2 opposed. The county awarded the study authorization and directed staff to proceed with the $12,000 contract, split across the four accounts noted by staff.
The board’s discussion emphasized that the study is not an authorization to construct the facility but a conceptual evaluation to inform future decisions and possible alignment with the comprehensive plan.
