Starkville aldermen will hear a proposal from engineer Edward Kemp and Mississippi State University Parking Services Director Jeremiah Dumas on how to improve the Starkville Sportsplex’s city-university mass transit stop that could lead to a major infrastructure makeover at the facility.
Starkville Parks and Recreation officials previously blamed Starkville-MSU Area Rapid Transit (SMART Route) buses’ weight and usage for causing significant potholes in the Sportsplex’s entrance road and parking lot. While requesting city assistance for repairs this summer, Parks Director Herman Peters said the washes became prominent after the SMART Route began servicing the shuttle stop, which is one of the primary city-campus connection points.
Dumas confirmed he, along with Kemp and Ward 4 Alderman Jason Walker, met with Peters to discuss not only how to alleviate possible SMART Route issues at the Sportsplex, but also the property’s overall infrastructure needs.
Tuesday’s report to aldermen will include placing a shuttle shelter where the property connects to Lynn Lane and improving a secondary access point to the Sportsplex to help solve traffic issues.
The SMART route was born after the university acquired a rural public transportation grant through the Mississippi Department of Transportation. It provides mass transit to all residents for free.
Abandoning the Sportsplex as a SMART Route drop-off point, Dumas said, is not feasible as the grant calls for connections to government facilities, including park locations. Lynn Lane’s high-density apartment clusters also provide the opportunity for large ridership figures.
“The central tenant (of the grant) is to provide service to everyone, primarily low- and moderate-income residences, and connect them to government, health care and recreational facilities. Therein lies the need for the Sportsplex — it’s the only park facility that can offer service access for everyone,” he said. “It’s one of the system’s main hubs because it’s a point where shuttles come together and allow riders to transition between routes. Obviously, MSU’s concern is that we want to continue to service the community, and park service is tied with grant rules.
“Our goal is to find solutions to benefit both SMART and Sportsplex users,” he added in reference to Tuesday’s presentation. “Our approach is to make improvements to the Lynn Lane-Sportsplex intersection, then gradually improve connections to the entire area. On any weekend night, you see very long lines (of automobiles) stacking and queuing, trying to get in and out. Because of that volume, the facility itself would benefit to have two ways of ingress and egress.”
Improvements are also expected to address Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility with the area’s infrastructure.
Tuesday’s presentation will go over a multi-phase improvement plan and its associated price tag. A call to Kemp for cost estimates went unreturned Friday.
The city’s parks are run by Starkville Park Commission, an autonomous board of representatives appointed by aldermen but independent of direct city control.
Even though autonomy means Parks is supposed to pay for its own improvements and live within its own budget figures, Ward 6 Alderman Roy A. Perkins previously showed a desire to use city funding for a long-term infrastructure solution at the Sportsplex.
Before adopting the city’s Fiscal Year 2014-2015 budget, aldermen gave Parks a $60,000 bailout after the group ran out of money in September and could not make payroll, retirement and utility payments on its own.
The board will scale back Parks’ monthly city allocations by $5,000 per month beginning in April to make up for the cash advance.
SPC passed its FY 2014-2015 budget last week — a document that projects another revenue shortfall — and is expected to ask aldermen to allocate an additional $125,000 for increasing electricity costs.
Documents showed Parks owed about $68,000 in back payments for electric and water services to Starkville Electric Department last month after beginning the calendar year with $112,038.33 in combined arrears.
When asked about the department’s outstanding balance last month, Peters said the total dropped to about $61,000 with September’s payments, but the total could not be confirmed with the city’s Freedom of Information Act response because of missing information.
Aldermen previously recommended SPC institute sign-up fees for team sports to increase revenues, but Peters said higher costs could drive some families away from registering their children for such activities.
The board also ordered a comprehensive report on Parks’ financial health by the end of the calendar year. Along with Ward 1 Alderman and Walker, Ward 3 Alderman David Little, who motioned for the report last month, hinted at a future city takeover of Parks if its financial issues do not improve, but aldermen fell short of any formal discussions or action on the matter.
Carl Smith covers Starkville and Oktibbeha County for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter @StarkDispatch
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