Herriman City Council hears update on Southwest Athletic Complex and $25 million grant bid

Herriman City Council received an update Wednesday on the proposed Southwest Athletic Complex, including a plan to seek nearly $25 million from the Zap Recreation Grant to fund Phase 1. Wendy, a city staff member presenting the plan, told the council, “We requested almost $25,000,000 from the Zap Recreation Grant,” and said the request includes the city match but does not include land value.

The project as presented is broken into phases. Wendy said Phase 1 would include five fields, three restroom facilities, a maintenance-and-operations building, complex operations space, parking and trailhead amenities. She described a smaller Phase 1a that would be a starter project (two fields, restrooms, parking and infrastructure) with a projected budget of about $12 million and a $10 million grant request. “This phase we’re calling 1a plus,” Wendy said, and she added that some grant requests are interdependent: the city also applied to a TRCC program for roughly $2.5 million earmarked to build the trailhead, but that funding would come only if the larger Zap Recreation award is approved.

Mayor Nathan (first reference) and other council members asked about private interest and partnerships; Wendy said the city has met with potential investors and partners but that many want to see more site activity before committing. A council member noted that forming a regional recreation taxing district with neighboring cities might provide an additional revenue stream tied to hotel taxes; Wendy said staff will pursue talks with nearby South Jordan and others to explore synergy.

Council members also discussed the competitive county-level bond process. Wendy and the chair flagged county rules that reserve a large portion of bond funds for deferred maintenance; the presenters said roughly 30–40% of a county pool is directed to maintenance and a portion is reserved for new projects in fast-growing areas such as the southwest valley. Wendy emphasized the strength of Herriman’s local match and the team’s preparations ahead of a Friday presentation to the Zap Recreation committee and a later TRCC board review.

Next steps: staff will present the application to the Zap Recreation Bond committee on Friday and follow up with the TRCC board. Council asked staff to continue outreach to potential partners and to report back on any commitments or changes to matching funds.