Tennis court construction set to begin

Bentonville council OKs $1.2 million bid for project

BENTONVILLE — Tennis players will have a second court complex to use this fall, marking another milestone in the work at Citizen Park.

Construction of an eight-court facility should begin in May, according to David Wright, parks and recreation director.

The City Council approved, 8- 0, Benchmark Construction’s $1.2 million bid for the project Tuesday. It also approved paying CEI Engineering $26,300 for construction observation of the project.

The Parks and Recreation Department has $1.3 million in this year’s budget for the complex.

The complex will include courts with lights, restrooms, a parking lot, covered canopies and windscreens, according to Wright’s memo to council.

Bleachers and trees aren’t included in the bid package, but the Parks and Recreation Department will buy bleachers and plant trees toward the end of construction, Wright said after the meeting.

The complex will be on the northeast corner of Citizens Park, the 24 acres around the Community Center in the city’s southwest.

“Parks and Recreation’s Junior Tennis Program at Memorial Park is the largest in our state,” Wright wrote. “These courts will provide much- needed additional space for our programming and open tennis play.”

There were 3,253 participants in the Parks and Recreation tennis program in 2016, according to the department’s annual report. The program has both recreational and competitive components.

Memorial Park as a 12- court tennis complex about 6 miles northeast of the Community Center.

The new courts will add another option to the center’s already full lineup of activities, Mayor Bob McCaslin said after the meeting. It will also be more convenient for those not near Memorial Park.

“We have a lot more traffic than we did eight years ago,” he said. “A lot of people who are avid tennis fans will find those courts much closer to where they live and not have to go to through the process of migrating through traffic to get there.”

The Community Center opened in 2015. Parks and Recreation officials have been working on its plan,

which included a tennis court complex, for Citizens Park since then.

Three multipurpose fields with a restroom and concession facility are to the building’s southeast, Citizens Park Trail — a 1-mile hard-surface

trail — loops around the grounds and a pavilion is northwest of the building.

The tennis courts are the next project. That will leave an all-inclusive playground on the to-do list.

Department officials are raising money and seeking grants for the $750,000 playground, which will be accessible to children of

differing abilities.

The council also agreed to establish a task force to explore the feasibility of an animal shelter in Bentonville. Council member Bill Burckart recommended the proposal be placed on the April 24 meeting.

The task force would be made up of nine members from various groups including

council members, members of animal rescues, representative from a charitable organization and a few residents. There would be two public meetings before the task force brings its report to City Council in October, Burckart said.