Quincy Valley parks board being formed

QUINCY — The new Quincy Valley Regional Parks District could start holding its first meetings in April. 

Quincy City Administrator Pat Haley said the formation of the new district’s board is underway.

“We have submitted an interlocal agreement to the city of George and the Grant County Commission regarding formation of the parks district,” Haley wrote in answer to an email from the Columbia Basin Herald. “We’ve asked each entity to have the document reviewed and signed in March so the parks district board, with representatives from each entity, can start meeting in April.”

Quincy City Council members approved continuing work on a draft design contract for the Q-Plex fieldhouse Tuesday. 

“The intent of this is to have a draft document ready when the board becomes a real thing,” Public Works Director Carl Worley told council members. “So it will be kind of done, but they may have comments or input.”

Council members also approved an update to the contract with NAC Architects, Spokane, to design the new Quincy Aquatic Center. 

“This is to have a draft in place when the board (meets) so we can have their input,” he said.

Voters in Quincy, George and the surrounding area approved the parks district in November. Property owners will be assessed 50 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value, beginning in 2025. The money raised through the district must be used for specific projects, in this case to build and operate the fieldhouse and the pool. 

The parks district boundaries are the same as the Quincy School District, minus the section of the QSD in Douglas County.

The Q-Plex will be about 143,000 square feet, enough room for a football field or multiple soccer fields, two or four soccer fields depending on the number of players. The fieldhouse also will have indoor courts that can be configured for basketball, volleyball or pickleball, among other options. 

Haley said in an earlier interview that the goal is to make Quincy a destination for people who want to have a place to play year-round.

“We made it bigger than what is normally necessary just for the city of Quincy,” he said. “We made it big enough that it would draw people to this town. That was the vision, this is a tournament-size facility. This will be a regional draw for team sports and (athletic) activities. That’s going to generate all sorts of economic activity here in our town, and really relieve the long-term perception that there’s nothing to do in Quincy.”

The building’s frame will be covered with a membrane rather than having solid walls. Over time the membrane will have to be replaced, but that will be cheaper than rebuilding, Haley said. 

The existing Quincy Aquatic Center has a pool, a separate pool for the waterslide and a bathhouse. The original community pool, now called the lap pool, was closed for a portion of the 2023 season while city officials replaced drains that were no longer in compliance with state regulations. Haley said the lap pool also appears to be leaking. 

City officials signed a contract with NAC in 2022 to work on cost estimates and start the design process. The design of both projects is scheduled for 2024.

The Q-Plex will be in a section of Lauzier Park, 13th Avenue Southwest. The pool will remain in East Park but will be relocated.

Cheryl Schweizer may be reached via email at cschweizer@columbiabasinherald.com.