New Locker Rooms Coming To Bielenberg Sports Center

Judging by the response from Woodbury booster clubs at Wednesday night’s city council workshop, work on a new locker room facility at the will start sooner than later.

The Woodbury City Council gave tacit approval for plans to construct the new locker rooms, which will provide space for the girls and boys hockey teams and the girls team.

The council took no formal action Wednesday, but seemed ready to give the project the green light next week. The 3,200-square-foot locker room facility will be built at the Bielenberg Sports Center this fall.

The only sticking point from the city’s perspective is the contribution from South Washington County Schools.

The project is estimated to cost $340,000, with booster clubs kicking in $45,000 and the school district contributing $275,000, leaving the remaining balance to the city.

Yet if the project becomes more costly, the city wants District 833 to cover any expenses above the remaining $20,000.

“You can’t draw a line in the sand and say ($275,000), that’s all we’re putting in,” Councilman Paul Rebholz said.

The District 833 School Board is expected to discuss the matter at its meeting tonight (Sept. 22).

South Washington County Schools contributed a similar amount for locker rooms at Park High School, and it has become an inequity issue for the district, said Bob Klatt, the city’s Parks and Recreation director.

Rebholz said: “The school district is the one with the issue here, not the city."

Woodbury will recoup its $20,000 through a new arrangement for work during hockey games at Bielenberg.

The city currently pays members of booster clubs $2,000 to $3,000 each year for the work, Klatt said, and that staffing will be provided by volunteers in the future.

The new locker rooms will not affect , Klatt said.