Dreams of a recreational and aquatic facility attached to a new Ames Middle School may become reality in the coming months, say Ames government leaders and school officials.

The idea for the combined facility is one year old, said Nancy Carroll, director of the Ames Parks and Recreation Department.

Since the local option sales tax was passed in Story County in October 2002, planning for a new Ames Middle School has proceeded briskly. Now the Ames government is trying to create a plan for the joint use recreational facility and find funding for its portion of the work.

Ames lags far behind other central Iowa cities of similar size in terms of its recreational and aquatic facilities, Carroll said.

“There are about 25,000 non-ISU residents in Ames,” Carroll said. “We have two pools — Carr Pool was built in 1935, and Municipal Pool is shared with Ames High School. We also have just one gymnasium available for public use.”

Ankeny, in comparison, has pool and gymnasium facilities numbering in the teens, Carroll said.

The city’s research shows a clear need in Ames for some type of new recreational facility available to the general public, especially indoor and outdoor pools, she said.

One proposed facility would include the indoor and outdoor pools, an elevated track, gymnasium space, and a weight room, Carroll said.

Carroll said ISU facilities such as Beyer Hall and State Gym are often not convenient for Ames residents for various reasons, including the priority given to ISU students. “There are different needs for different clientele,” she said.

Mike Harvey, director of recreation services, said members of the general public are not allowed to purchase memberships at the Lied Recreation Center unless they are members of the Iowa State Alumni Association.

Harvey said he believes the project would help Iowa State’s recreation department because a new Ames facility would not compete directly with the Lied Recreation Center.

“[Students] would be entitled to use that new facility as a resident of the city of Ames,” Harvey said.

Additional recreational facilities in Ames would ease demand on Beyer Hall and State Gym, by students and the public during weekend family hours, he said.

The city has not yet approved funding for the facility. Cost estimates of around $20 million for the city’s portion of the construction costs make it likely a bond issue would be needed, Carroll said.

Surveys and research have shown support for the project but Carroll said she is unsure of how much support a bond would receive among Ames residents.

The city is currently waiting for a report from an outside consultant on issues facing the project. Carroll said she hopes the project can move forward when the new data becomes available later this spring.

Ames Community School District officials said they support the idea of a collaboration between the city and school district on the project.

“[Ames residents] like to see the organizations they pay their taxes to working hard to try to accomplish these sorts of things,” said Jane Acker, president of the school board.

Acker said she is excited and hopeful about seeing the project gain momentum in the coming months.

“We have a design review committee that I hope is going to be formed by the end of the month,” she said.

Carroll said cooperation between the city and school district is vital if the recreational facility is to be a success.

“Partnerships are something we need to look at in order to make capital improvements of this sort,” she said.

Carol Kenealy, School and Community Relations for the Ames school district, said they hope to open the new Ames Middle School in the fall of 2005.