As debate over a proposed soccer and aquatic complex near Interstates 10 and 65 continued to divide local officials, Mobile County Commissioner Merceria Ludgood offered a more measured position than some of her colleagues, saying she backs the idea “conceptually” but wants concrete cost figures before committing further.
Ludgood, one of three votes on the Mobile County Commission, said the biggest unresolved question remains price, and that answer won’t be available until consulting firm Neel-Schaffer Inc. finishes a cost analysis due in November. “The most salient features of this have to be the costs and whether or not we can put together the funding for it,” Ludgood said. “We won’t even know how to start that until we get numbers.”
She declined to weigh in directly on whether the Mobile City Council should set aside city funds in its 2015 budget to help the county cover part of the project, an idea Commissioner Connie Hudson has pushed in recent weeks as she lobbied council members ahead of a scheduled budget vote. The complex’s first phase would sit on 200 acres the county holds an option to purchase for roughly $3.1 million.
Ludgood’s comments came a day after Mayor Sandy Stimpson urged the council not to redirect budgeted funds toward the county-led project, instead pushing for the council to approve $3 million he set aside for repairs to the city’s existing park system. Fellow County Commissioner Jerry Carl has gone further, calling the I-10/I-65 site a poor use of taxpayer money and urging officials to explore cheaper alternative locations for a soccer complex instead.
Ludgood said large recreational projects like this one have historically been joint city-county ventures, though she stopped short of committing city dollars to it. “Projects of this scope typically have been joint projects with the city and county coming together,” she said. “I know all of that is driven by revenue. I can’t really speak for the city’s budget.” She noted the county may eventually roll some or all of the project’s cost into a capital improvement bond issue it could consider later in the year, and said officials were also exploring whether the project could draw private donations or qualify for RESTORE Act funding tied to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon settlement.
On the scope of the project itself, Ludgood said her focus for now is strictly on the soccer fields rather than the more elaborate aquatic center envisioned for later phases, which would include an outdoor water park with a lazy river, splash pads, and an indoor competitive pool. “I’m only dealing with the soccer aspect of it,” she said. “I know Commissioner Hudson has a broader vision for the complex.”
With the council’s budget vote looming and commissioners still split on financing details, the project’s fate remained tied up with the broader city budget negotiations playing out at Government Plaza.