Steven Spearie
The State Journal-Register
Ward 6 Ald. Kristin DiCenso has been one of the most vocal supporters of the Scheels Sports Complex at Legacy Pointe. DiCenso noted Tuesday she has sat through endless meetings with developers, with labor union heads and other allies of the projects.
Just weeks before going off the city council, DiCenso, who did not seek reelectionon April 4, had some pointed advice for members considering an amended development agreement that would mean a larger financial commitment from the city.
Among those supporting the amendment Tuesday were Ward 2 Ald. Shawn Gregory and Ward 3 Ald. Roy Williams Jr., both “no” votes from the initial 2021 vote. That left Ward 7 Ald. Joe McMenamin, who is also leaving the council, as the lone “no” vote.
After the agreement is signed, possibly by the end of the week by Mayor Jim Langfelder, developers Steve Luker and Dirk McCormick will have 90 days to finalize financing and put shovels in the ground.
The 95-acre complex just off MacArthur Boulevard near Interstate 72 will include indoor and outdoor sports facilities designed to host 60- to 100-team tournaments on weekends, though District 186 middle and high school teams could use the fields and courts under an earlier agreement.
Unlike an earlier “phased approach,” both the indoor and outdoor venues now will be built together, with completion slated before the end of 2025. The overall cost is pegged to be around $67 million.
Local tourism officials have projected the complex could generate some 250,000 new visitors along with about $30 million in new spending annually.
The city’s development assistance cap goes from $36.26 million to $45 million. The agreement asks the city for a “dollar-for dollar” match of the developers’ expenditures for ongoing costs, maintenance, replacements and capital improvements of up to $500,000 annually, from $250,000.
The city’s half of assisting on the building of the facilities also goes up by $3 million.
The city’s assistance is coming through a hotel-motel tax incentive, with 2% of the 8% citywide hotel-motel tax being allocated for the complex. There are sales tax and property tax rebates also helping out.
Unlike other facilities around the country, this one isn’t municipally owned or operated, leaving the developers to line up financing, a complex deal that with a health pandemic and shifting markets has made for a long and winding journey, Luker said Tuesday.
Luker said he understands the project’s skeptics, “but I don’t know anyone who doesn’t want to see this. This is our community. We want to see this for our community.”
“It’s going to bring outside resources to Springfield,” Langfelder acknowledged after the meeting. “Any city that grows, has to have those outside dollars. As we said, it’s more than Abe (Lincoln), it’s more than Route 66.”
While applauding the stick-to-itiveness of the project’s supporters, McMenamin said he couldn’t stomach the city’s $45 million subsidy.
“Government shouldn’t be in the place of guaranteeing private profit and avoiding private loss unless it’s an activity crucial to the city’s core mission, (like) public safety and infrastructure,” he said. “We have other needs out there.”
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Joe McMenamin for Ward 7 