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Council agrees to explore purchase of former Commerce Middle School gym; architect says 'good bones'
Summary
Councilors asked staff to keep negotiating after staff relayed an architect's assessment that the Culver Street gym has sound structure and could provide 10–15 years of use with $100,000–$150,000 in accessibility and general improvements; ISD offered sale and the city currently leases the facility for about $48,000 a year.
Commerce — City staff told the council on April 7 that the Commerce Independent School District has asked whether the city would consider buying the former Commerce Middle School gym on Culver Street, a facility the city leases for youth recreation.
Staff said the city currently pays about $4,000 a month ($48,000 a year) to lease the gym for basketball and volleyball programs. ISD staff recently asked whether the city would prefer to purchase the gym rather than continue leasing it.
An architect retained by the city performed a walkthrough and issued a recommendation report. "In his professional opinion, you could get easily 10, potentially 15 years of beneficial use out of this facility," staff relayed. The architect recommended limited immediate investment to bring restrooms and access into ADA compliance and suggested budgeting for future HVAC work; staff summarized the near-term scope at roughly $100,000–$150,000 and said the architect would not recommend paying more than about $250,000 to acquire the building given anticipated additional work.
Context and constraints: staff noted a new, full-scale recreation center would likely cost many millions of dollars (staff cited an $8 million–$15 million range for a new build), and acquiring the gym could provide near-term recreation space at substantially lower cost. At the same time, councilors cautioned that acquisition entails ongoing operational costs — staffing, program budgets, parking and site improvements — that must be budgeted and compared with other priorities such as streets and utilities.
Utilities and portables: staff said demolition activity at the former middle school had required the city to reconnect water and sewer to the gym and that gas and electrical work remain to be completed; staff also said the city would seek to include two portables in a purchase package for additional meeting or storage space and negotiate an access easement so ISD maintenance facilities retain access.
Council direction: after discussion the council signaled support for continuing negotiations and directed staff to advance the conversation, including preparing more detailed cost estimates, staffing implications and negotiation terms. "So what I think we are hearing from the council is that it's something that we'd like to look at," one council member said near the end of the workshop.
Next steps: staff will return a detailed proposal and potential purchase terms for council consideration once negotiations and detailed cost estimates (including staffing and site work) are available.
