Improving Facilities to Enhance Quality of Life in Lafayette

Lafayette residents of all ages value top-notch amenities and modern facilities; however, the City’s buildings are failing and cannot keep up with the increasing demand. Without new investments in our infrastructure, recreation amenities and core essential services will be negatively impacted.

• Some City buildings that provide essential services and functions are up to 50+ years old and are failing.

• At 35 years old, the pool at Bob. L.Burger Rec Center was closed last summer for six months due to failing and leaking pipes. This left the community without an indoor pool.

• The popular water slide is no longer functional, and the lazy river pumps are broken beyond repair; there are no existing resources to address this.

• The City’s parks and public works service center is 52 years old and isn’t large enough to accommodate fire engines and large equipment, such as snowplows, which aren’t covered and suffer premature damage due to inclement weather. This can affect service times for our community.

• Town Hall is 40 years old and not optimized for energy efficiency, public safety, or public and ADA accessibility.

• Only 0.46% of the City’s annual budget ($560,000) is allocated to facility maintenance projects for approximately 20 City-owned buildings.

• Given the limited resources, those funds largely support routine maintenance and proactive maintenance when possible.

• These funds cannot accommodate the substantial upgrades and improvements that the recreation and service centers require to meet the community’s needs.

Project Scope	Cost Estimate	Timeline
Expand by approximately 30% and renovate some portions, including the aquatics complex and community programming space.	$34 million for design, construction, and other associated costs.	1 year of design informed by community input and 18-24 months of construction.

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While the overall structure of the recreation center remains usable, the 35-year-old aquatics complex has reached the end of its life. The current complex routinely experiences significant leaks and mechanical failures, resulting in closures. The proposed renovation would enhance services for residents by:

• Replacing and expanding the entire aquatics area, installing a new water slide, a warm-water pool for therapeutic aquatics, an indoor whirlpool, and a larger lap pool.
• Additional space for individual workouts, fitness classes, older adult programming, preschool, after-school programming, and flexible community space.

The current facility will continue to require costly stop-gap repairs to address mechanical failures and leaks, resulting in significant water loss. The facility’s outdated design requires disruptive work, such as tearing up the pool deck, to reach mechanical equipment and repair leaks. Improved equipment and modern design would not only address current deficiencies but also improve the City’s ability to repair leaks and equipment in the future.

The aquatics facility leaks water and is not energy efficient. The renovation and replacement would address these concerns and improve the building envelope, including walls, windows, doors, foundation, and insulation, to increase energy efficiency.

Project Scope	Cost Estimate	Timeline
Construct a new 33,000 square-foot building on vacant land owned by the City in Old Town to increase community space for residents, build capacity for future growth, and improve building efficiency.	$34 million for design, construction, and other associated costs.	1 year of design informed by community input and 18-24 months of construction.

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A new Civic Center on South Public Road would provide a more welcoming community space and better access to government resources and services. It would also provide a southern anchor in Old Town, support a variety of Lafayette’s adopted plans to implement the community’s vision, and further activate the South Public Road corridor.

Municipal services have evolved since the construction of the current City Hall in 1985. Over the past 40 years, existing services have expanded, and new services have emerged based on community interests or regulatory requirements. Examples include communications to increase engagement, economic development to support economic diversification and resiliency, planning and building services to meet demand for development review and inspections, sustainability to implement community climate action goals, and professional engineering staff to improve the reliability and safety of Lafayette's infrastructure. A new Civic Center would provide:

• A modernized building that would provide a safe, inclusive, and welcoming space for everyone

• The ability to help support revitalization efforts in Old Town, given its location at [South Public Road]

• Connecting city services and staff to businesses and residents, inviting civic participation in Lafayette decision-making.

The current City Hall has inefficient systems and a multitude of deferred maintenance needs, including a fire suppression system, a redesign of the parking lot and building entrance to meet ADA requirements, and a roof replacement. Constructing a new facility would address these deficiencies and reduce overall operating costs through the use of modern equipment and an efficient building envelope.

A new Civic Center would improve energy efficiency by an estimated 27%. These energy efficiency measures come from improving the building envelope and installing energy-efficient equipment and lighting systems. The new Civic Center would also provide additional electric vehicle (EV) chargers for public use, thereby expanding Lafayette’s public EV charging network.

Project Scope	Cost Estimate	Timeline
Restructure and renovate the building's interior to improve efficiencies, enhance staff safety, and expand the building’s fleet maintenance bays and storage facilities.	$6 million for design, construction, and other associated costs.	6 months of design and 12 months of construction.

The services provided by the Service Center are crucial to maintaining a high quality of life, ensuring safety, and providing convenience for all Lafayette residents. The Service Center provides the space, equipment, and materials necessary for the maintenance of all utilities, streets, fleet, parks, and open space. Improvements to this facility would:

• Enlarge fleet bay areas to accommodate fire engines, snowplows, and large equipment to reduce City vehicle downtime for maintenance and repairs.
• Update the electrical system to provide electrification for electric vehicle (EV) chargers, diagnostic equipment, HVAC systems, lighting, and other technologies.
• Modernize basic workspaces and expand personnel areas such as showers, bathrooms, and cleaning stations for staff working in unsanitary conditions.
• Expand storage space to avoid outdoor storage and extend the lifespan of equipment stored at the site, including snowplows.

Facility improvements would reduce building operating costs by improving energy efficiency, reduce premature damage to equipment currently stored outside, and increase operational efficiencies by co-locating similar maintenance functions currently located throughout the City.

In its current condition, the Service Center lacks basic energy efficiency and environmental stewardship measures. Portions of the building do not have insulation, the aging building systems consistently fail, and the site suffers from poor drainage, resulting in building flooding and potential safety hazards and environmental concerns.

Additionally, the City is currently transitioning to an EV fleet but the transition is limited by electrical capacity at the Service Center, which is the central hub for fleet operations. The proposed renovations include right-sizing the electrical capacity serving the site to further support the transition to EVs.

City Council is considering a $74 Million Bond (low-interest loan) to address immediate needs.

• Short-term fixes are no longer an option; they are costly and further prolong the need for long-term, sustainable improvements.

• Months of community engagement and input demonstrated the community’s desire for more modernized amenities and facilities.

• A one-time $74 million investment would go a long way toward modernizing the City’s oldest buildings – and providing residents the amenities and services they want and deserve.

• The debt would be paid back through a modest increase in property taxes. The cost for the average-priced Lafayette home ($712,000) is estimated at $23/month (which is typically paid through a monthly mortgage payment).

• Taking into account input and polling results from the past several months, City Council will decide in August on the ballot language.

• In that case, voters would decide in November whether or not to invest in the City’s failing infrastructure.

• The reality we face is that without major improvements to the Recreation Center, there won’t be enough amenities and services to offer residents to justify the cost of keeping it open in the long run.

• Without upgrades to the Service Center, the City’s snow, fire, and other essential responses would be impacted.