Public Forum for Proposed Ankeny Sports Complex Draws Many Questions from Residents

More than 50 people gathered at in Ankeny Sunday evening to voice their concern and support for a proposed sports complex.

The would be composed of four development areas, including a natatorium (Olympic swimming pool with diving capabilities), a football stadium, an indoor sports and sports entertainment center and an outdoor sports complex.

Clark Kramme, an Ankeny resident, and Jason Clement, a representative from Sports Facilities Advisory, gave a presentation for the first hour of the meeting, and then opened it up for questions and answers.

The residents attending the meeting voiced several concerns about the project, including the need for the project, the impact on property taxes. They also questioned who would use the project.

Kramme and Clement presented three options for the groups: 1) Do nothing, and wait and see what happens as Ankeny grows. 2) Build two of everything at both high schools or 3) Build the shared-facilities complex they were proposing.

A Question of Pools

Todd Shafer, an Ankeny school board member, was one of the voices heard throughout the event. Shafer took issue with the development of the pool complex.

Kramme and Clement said that having one swimming pool was creating scheduling issues for people wanting to use the facility, but Shafer said the problem is with swim clubs wanting to use the pool, and not school-sponsored events.

“My own daughter is in swim (club), she comes home at 9 p.m. every night because we have a pool capacity problem,” Shafer said. “But not a school problem. Our swimmers have access to the pool when they need it.”

Shafer wants to come up with a plan for a pool on-site, while Kramme and Clement would rather build an Olympic-sized pool that could accommodate both swim teams, as well as provide space for the diving team.

Next Concern: If You Build It, Will They Come?

Multiple residents expressed concerns that Ankeny could not compete with larger venues.

“Kansas City and Omaha, they’re cities that draw these sorts of people,” one Ankeny resident said to Kramme and Clements. “We’re still talking about bringing people here and actually getting the numbers and the money.”

Clement said that their forecasted event numbers are very conservative, and that the city of Ankeny has told them their numbers are conservative.

“I’m not talking about filling it every weekend,” Clement said. “It’s a very reasonable number of events that we’re talking about here. … The numbers we have here are incredibly realistic and doable.”

Clement also pointed out Ankeny’s close proximity to the Des Moines metropolitan area, and said its location would work well in favor of attracting people to events.

“Ankeny is part of the metro area, so if you look at the way Des Moines has developed in the last five years, it’s phenomenal,” Clement said. “People are coming to Des Moines because of the economic conditions in the last three or four years.”

Next Concern: The Impact on Local Property Taxes

Residents also were concerned with the impact a sports complex might have on their already burdensome property taxes. Kramme and Clement said they have heard concerns of taxes frequently.

“The school has their hands full with two new high schools,” one Ankeny resident said. “The people can’t afford any more taxes.’

Clement and Kramme argued the resulting businesses and development the creation of a sports complex would bring would help alleviate taxes in the long run, as well as solve problems with upgrading the current facilities.

Not all residents were opposed to the idea of a complex.

“We have the infrastructure to entertain people after their sports’ event is over,” one resident said. “Omaha, Kansas City, all those places bring people, but small communities bring people too,” one resident said. “I’ve been to them, I know they do."

Clement said that the next step is to determine if the school board and city are seriously interested in pursuing the complex.