Public input meeting to be held for Curry County sports complex

The Curry County administration wants public input on a possible county sports complex/recreation center.

According to a news release from County Manager Lance Pyle the public is invited to a meeting on the matter Monday at 5:15 p.m. in the county commission room in the county administrative building at 417 Gidding Street in Clovis.

The purpose of the meeting according to the release is to get input and ideas from the public on the need for recreational space in the community and throughout the county.

The county administration believes public input can assist county personnel with preliminary planning and design of a new sports complex/recreation center.

The Curry County Commission has awarded a contract to Vigil and Associates Architectural Group to provide the county with conceptual design and cost estimate for a sports complex/recreation center to be located at the county fairgrounds.

Monday’s meeting is the first step in determining the needs of such a facility.

The idea for such a facility was brought up by Curry County Commissioner Seth Martin at the July 26 regular session as commissioners shared ideas on capital improvements for the county.

Martin plans on being at Monday’s meeting.

“I want to find out whether it’s needed,” Martin said. “Find out if the need is there before you spend a lot of money on a facility nobody needs.”

Martin spoke of a conversation with Melrose school officials in which they spoke of Clovis sports teams asking to use the Melrose school facilities.

“Clovis schools are big, overpopulated and have limited space for the amount of kids that want to participate in sports,” Martin said. “There’s a shortage of gym space.”

Martin said when his children were growing up they were in a lot of intramural sports and they would travel to Texas to use the Texas sports facilities.

If there’s a need, Martin’s vision of such a facility would be a multi-use one for sports and other activities.

He says lack of such a facility is hurting the county.

“We’ve been told we’re missing out on grants because we don’t have this kind of facility,” Martin said. “The way they write grants, you have to have a certain kind of facility on hand to get those grants.”

Martin visualizes a great site for the sports facility would be on the county fairgrounds adjacent to the new county extension office.

“This would be a facility for all Curry County schools,” Martin said. “Not just Clovis, but Texico, Melrose and Grady too.”