Your Input Needed For Redesign of Oro Valley Community and Recreation Center

Your input is needed for the newly-purchased Oro Valley Community and Recreation Center. It is needed so that the center will be what the majority of  Oro Valley residents want it to be.

Resident input has been sparse
The town has attempted on two occasions to get significant resident input on what they would like to see in the center. Unfortunately, only about 100 of Oro Valley's 41,000 residents came to these meetings.

• On June 29, the Town held an open house, “Meet the Architect” event to assist the architects with remodeling the Community and Recreation facility. Around thirty people attended this meeting. The majority of those were former El Conquistador Country Club members, now Community Center members. Councilmembers Hornat and Waters and their wives were also there, as were members of Town Staff.
• On August 17 the town hosted a "design charrette." There were about seventy people. Once again, however, many attendees were former El Conquistador Country Club members, now Community Center members. Some members of the Oro Valley Youth Advisory Committee were there together with the Town Manager, town staff, Mayor Hiremath and council members Hornat, Snider, and Waters.

Weighing-in matters
The town is moving quickly to design and then remodel the center. They will move with or without broad resident input. In their haste, they will make expensive, long-lasting decisions. It is up to the residents of the community to make sure that these decisions reflect what they and not a select few want.

For example: One area where town staff believes they have achieved consensus is the remodeling of the full service restaurant. Oro Valley planner, Paul Keesler, for example, mentioned that during the first open house there was great support to keep the restaurant. There is no study substantiating his assertion.

The Oro Valley Community and Recreation Center belongs to every Oro Valley resident. Residents will subsidize this center with tax dollars and more. Oro Valley's residents need to opine:

• What do you want done with the facility? 
• What do you want included within the facility? 
• Do you want a full-service restaurant, as they are planning? 
• Would you like the Town to demolish the building and build a new one? 

If Oro Valley's residents don't speak on this, their recommendations will never be heard. Their recommendations will never have the opportunity to be reflected in the rebuild of the center.

Making your voice heard
Do not remain silent. Become involved. Do not let the small minority who attended these two meetings make all the recommendations. Here's what you can do:

• Attend future meetings (See below)
• Drop by the fitness lobby and put suggestions and questions in the old-fashion suggestion box.
• Use the newly created email address OVCRCsuggestions@orovalleyaz.gov to submit your ideas, suggestions, questions, and concerns. 
• Communicate with the Town Manager and council members to let them know what you want.
• Tell your friends and neighbors how they can opine

Public Hearing Tomorrow Night
There is a public hearing tomorrow night at 6pm at the El Conquistador Country Resort. The town will announce changes to the Pusch Ridge Golf Course and related club house located at 10000 N. Oracle Rd. Oro . The meeting starts at 6pm in the Coronado room.
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Thanks to Oro Valley resident Diane Bristow for contributing to this posting