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On August 2, 1999, the
Board of Supervisors approved $3,500,000 toward the
initiation of three sports complexes for the youth of
Fauquier County. These funds were authorized as the
County's commitment to a partnership with a coalition of
youth sports organizations now known as the Fauquier Youth
Sports Coordination Council (FYSCC). The three sites were
to be located in the northern, central, and southern
portions of the County.
The central site has been
acquired and is located between Route 674 and Route 643,
just south of Warrenton. A site plan for this complex has
recently been completed in conjunction with the Fauquier
Youth Sports Coordination Council. A partnership agreement
for this site has already been approved in the form of a
lease arrangement of the fields and areas immediately
adjacent to the fields. The lease arrangement for the
fields on this property requires approval of the plans by
both the Board of Supervisors and the Youth Sports
Coordination Council. In compliance with this requirement,
the Council approved the plans on April 28, 2004, and it is
now submitted to the Board of Supervisors for its approval.
Upon approval, the plans
will be processed through the Community Development
Department and then advertised for bid. It is anticipated
that regulatory review will take approximately 90 days and
the bidding processes approximately 60 days. During these
processes acquisition of right-of-way, wetland mitigation
credits, and other work tasks will be completed. The
initial bidding will be grouped by similar work elements:
the access road, bike trail, and parking will be bid as a
project using both County and Virginia Department of
Transportation (VDOT) recreational access funding; the park
elements (shelter, playground, etc.) will be bid as a
project using Land and Water Conservation Funds provided by
the Virginia Outdoors Fund (VOF); the maintenance building
will be bid as a project using County funds; and other
amenities (signage, benches, etc.) will be acquired using
VOF and County funds.
The original proposal from
the Sports Council allocated $466,667 for construction of
the initial infrastructure at each complex to support the
ball fields. The fields and related facilities are the
responsibility of the Council. This amount was allocated to
each complex without prior knowledge of the sites to be
selected and, therefore, without regard to any specific
issues that might arise for sites not yet identified at the
time of funding approval. Funding priority is proposed
first to the acquisition of wetland credits for mitigation;
acquisition of right-of-way for road access and utility
relocation, as needed; parking for the fields and extension
of road, as needed; gates to control access; maintenance
building; utility connections/future
connections/relocations, limited landscaping and signage;
and well service for residence. Estimates for each of these
elements are currently being developed.
While plans are
substantially complete, some items still remain unfinished,
such as the shelter design, landscaping, along with minor
corrections and clarifications. The Parks and Recreation
Board seeks authority to make minor changes to the plans,
subject to approval by FYSCC.
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