LOXAHATCHEE, Fla. — WPTV is getting answers for residents in Loxahatchee, frustrated that Temple Park facilities have been closed for nearly a year.
It’s an issue we told you about a couple of weeks ago.
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WPTV’s Michael Hoffman did some digging after a concerned resident reached out. he found that when the concrete courts were built in the early 2000s — there was no rebar used — leading it to fall apart over the years. It caused some safety concerns pushing officials to close the courts until they could figure out how to fix them.
Ashley Pollard and her son Hunter visit Temple Park nearly every day so he can get fresh air and burn off energy. But for almost a year, the tennis and basketball courts they love have been closed due to safety concerns.
"There's definitely some safety concerns here," Pollard said.
The courts have been shut down because of cracked surfaces that have been sitting and waiting for repairs for nearly a year. Ashley reached out to the Indian Trail Improvement District multiple times seeking answers, but received no response.
"I reached out to them quite a few times with no answer back," Ashley said.
WPTV’s Michael Hoffman contacted Elizabeth Accomondo, board president of the Indian Trail Improvement District. She explained that the board has been discussing the issue for months.
The lengthy construction timeline is because money was allocated last fiscal year, but couldn't be used until this fiscal year began in October. Officials also needed time to determine the best repair method that wouldn't create expensive problems later.
“We wanted a more permanent solution that would be cost-effective for we're spending residents' money, so we don't take that lightly, and it's our money too.” Accomondo We all live here, so we don't want to spend money just to throw it away.”
Accomondo said our previous report on the issue helped move things forward.
"I think it helped absolutely. It gave me the opportunity to hear from a resident," Accomondo said. “It wasn’t forgotten about, that's for sure.”
The board has now decided to spend approximately $1 million to completely tear out the existing courts and rebuild them from scratch.
"We're sort of going to build it like a road. We're going to put a compacted layer of dirt and rock, and then we're going to put asphalt," Accomondo said.
“We hadn't budgeted all of the money to be able to do it that way. There are a few hundred thousand dollars that is the balance. So what we're going to do is we're going to take it out of park operations, and in the meantime, we're checking with our bond counsel, who gets us bonds, to see if there's a short-term loan, like a five-year loan, and we can pay it off over five years.”
Building with asphalt instead of concrete will make future repairs easier if the courts are damaged or vandalized.
"We're expecting it to last at least 20 years," Accomondo said.
Ashley said she's relieved to finally have answers about the project's timeline.
"That's why I reached out to you guys, and you guys got an answer like this, so I think that that helped a lot," Pollard said.
Accomando says the timeline is still being worked out for when construction will begin. We'll keep you posted as soon as you learn when it starts.
