Child care shuffle at Rengstorff Child care shuffle at Rengstorff (January 20, 2006)

Condo owners want project pushed to other side of park

By Jon Wiener

Condominium owners at Parkview West raised a stink last year when they learned, after the fact, of the city's plan to build a child care center next to their complex. Next week, they will try to convince the city to move the center to another part of Rengstorff Park.

The city council will revisit the location of a planned center at a council meeting next Tuesday, in a discussion that could pit groups of residents against each other in a battle to save their own favorite piece of the park.

Council member Matt Neely, who proposed that he council reexamine the location after weeks of complaints from residents, said Tuesday's discussion will mark an important step forward for the project.

"We've got to do something to provide for young parents in that neighborhood," said Neely.

At the request of the council, city staff looked for sites within the park that could accommodate both a 7,000-square-foot building footprint and a play area of equal size while having the least amount of impact on park users.

A final version of the staff report outlining the different options was scheduled to be released Thursday afternoon. A draft of the report included the original location near the back of Parkview West, the site of the temporary senior center, a site along Crisanto Drive and another towards the front of the park along Rengstorff Avenue.

"There are pros and cons for each, which is great," said Neely.

The temporary senior center site is slated to welcome back the city's community gardens once construction on the new senior center is done. It is adjacent to an apartment complex and happens to be favored by many condo owners at Parkview West.

Before the outcry over the location delayed the project, the city was close to signing a contract with Children's Creative Learning Center to operate the 100-unit facility, and had already chosen a contractor to build the $2.8 million project.

Assistant city manager Nadine Levin said the delay is likely to mean the center won't open by the target date of early 2007.

"I think realistically we'd have to look at that timeline because we've lost a couple of months," said Levin. She added that city staff had interviewed many people in and around the park while writing the report.

E-mail Jon Wiener at jwiener@mv-voice.com

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