Sturgeon Bay Town Administrator Josh Van Lieshout (right) reviews a concept drawing illustrating possible improvements for the Memorial Field sports complex with Door County Administrator Ken Pabich. Photo by Kevin Boneske.
The snowstorm that arrived in the area on December 19 did not prevent the public from attending an open house that evening at the Door County Fire Company in Sturgeon Bay,
They were on hand to provide feedback on options for improving the outdoor sports complex encompassing Memorial Field in Sturgeon Bay and the possibility of building a new year-round indoor recreation/athletics center in Door County.
A steering committee, comprised of representatives from the Town of Sturgeon Bay, the Sturgeon Bay School District and other stakeholders, met with Ayres Associates, which is preparing a feasibility study on these projects.
“We worked with the steering committee to try to understand the goals and mission of the two different projects,” said Chris Silewski, landscape architect with Ayres. “From there, we were able to develop a series of charts that help achieve those goals and the programming that goes into those charts as well. »
The Common Council this year approved a $20,000 contribution to the $74,500 feasibility study to examine the potential development of an indoor and outdoor community sports complex. In addition to the $17,000 the school district contributed to the study, it also received financial support from Door County Medical Center, the Raibrook Foundation, Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding and the Door County Pickleball Club.
For the open house, Ayres put together three concept drawings showing how improvements could be made to the Memorial Field outdoor sports complex, as well as two concept drawings related to a possible indoor recreation/athletic center.
Silewski said conceptual drawings show different field configurations for the outdoor complex, while elements that could be included in an indoor facility are depicted in those drawings. The public could vote or provide written comments to give feedback on what they liked or didn’t like about these concepts.
“That’s really what we want to find out – what people are interested in – and then take that feedback and mold it together into maybe some sort of final plan, and then we can start to do the mathematical analysis of it,” he said. said City Administrator Josh. Van Lieshout.
He said how the improvements would be paid for had not yet been determined and those improvements could be completed in priority phases.
Concept drawings for the outdoor complex listed prices to make improvements ranging from $13 million to $14.35 million for the entire complex, with the relocated athletic field and turf field estimated at $4 million as a project priority number 1. Van Lieshout and Silewski said these estimates at this point are by no means firm.
The city and school district have been studying possible improvements to the facilities they own that are part of the Memorial Field sports complex for several years, such as upgrading surfaces and improving drainage to improve usability.
The school district uses the track and field facilities south of the high school on Michigan Street for football practice, but it has been years since the Clippers held a track meet there due to lack of rubberized running surface. Drainage issues can affect the usability of the Dick Clark Football Field and the length of its playing season.
A proposed improvement common to all three concept drawings was to place the track where the Jaycees softball field currently sits, at the southwest corner of Michigan Street and South 15th Avenue, and extend it south to the site current football field.
“Each of the concepts, and it seems to be universally agreed, shows that the existing track needs substantial improvement,” Van Lieshout said. “It shows a track and then, inside the track, an (artificial) turf area, whether it’s (for) football, soccer or whatever.”
He said other improvements to the sports complex could include an outdoor ice rink, improved parking and more designated public spaces.
“Right now, (there’s) open grass, open fields, but it doesn’t feel like you’re supposed to be there necessarily,” Van Lieshout said. “The idea is to make it more of a community type park.”
Features of indoor facilities
Kristen Jeanquart, a Sturgeon Bay resident who is also on the steering committee, said the new indoor facility under consideration is a countywide project.
“Part of what we study and ask people who come to the open house is to identify where they would like the facility to be located, where they will be most likely to visit it and where they think it would experience the most successful. “, she said.
Jeanquart said conceptual drawings outline what the indoor facility could include, such as pickleball courts, an indoor play area, a multi-purpose gymnasium and a multi-use turf field.
“There are a wide variety of options, but again, (we’re) trying to figure out what the appropriate size and scope is for our community,” she said.
Jeanquart said the goal of the interior project is not to compete with other existing facilities in the county.
“Our goal is to help residents stay local, rather than having to run all the way to Green Bay to do these kinds of activities with their families, and again, provide a year-round option for the winter months when we cannot be present. outside we do some things we like to have that inside option available,” she said.
Jeanquart said the feasibility study also seeks to determine the best business model to run the facility — whether privately operated, by the city, county or a nonprofit — and how to use it could be affordable for residents.
Next steps
Silewski said Ayres will review comments received during the open house with the committee.
“We’re trying to kick things off, see what sticks with the community and figure out where do we go from here, based on what the community says,” he said.
Silewski said Ayres hopes to conclude the feasibility study before the start of April.