Mayor Matt Murphy said bids for the Valpo Sports and Recreation Campus have come in too high, so the project's construction is being delayed.
Bids for the first phase of construction were launched in June, but have exceeded the $30 million budget by more than $7 million.
“When bid proposals were recently received and reviewed, the estimated cost to build the campus exceeded all prior reasonable estimates,” Murphy announced in a press release.
He said other communities are also experiencing the same hurdles for projects.
City Council members, parks leadership, Redevelopment Commission members and other consultants determined that “a speedy groundbreaking would not be reasonable.”
The city held public input sessions and enlisted consultants to come up with ideas for the campus, but when seeking bid proposals, costs exceeded estimates.
The campus was slated to include pickleball courts and trails on 250 acres east of Indiana 49, extending from Vale Park Road north to County Road 500 North.
Kevin Nuppnau, who succeeded John Siebert in July as the director of the Valparaiso parks department, said one of the key design elements of the planned sports complex was an “overlay field system.”
Murphy said future plans are still in the works.
“I am proud to lead a team and a community that dreams big, but also keeps its eye on fiscal responsibility,” Murphy said. “I’m confident we will find a great balance, just like we’ve done at Central Park Plaza, ValPlayso and throughout our signature parks.”
