City officials say the New Tampa Recreation Center should be back to full speed following repairs to a roof leak that caused damage to the pit and TumbleTrak area.
On June 23, a portion of the ceiling fell through, closing a portion of the recreational side of the gym for repairs.
The damage interfered with summer camps and regular City of Tampa classes, forcing parents who have children in the NTRC’s popular gymnastics program to drive their kids to the Wayne C. Papy Center in Seminole Heights for two weeks.
“I apologize for the inconvenience this may cause, but this is the best solution for all of the children in our program. If you need help with transportation, talk with some of the other parents to possibly set up a carpool,” read a text sent to parents following the issues with the roof.
The area of the roof that was leaking was repaired the same day, according to Ocea Lattimore, director of the city’s Logistics & Asset Management Department.
A couple of screws had started to back out of the metal roof at a joint in the metal panel, Lattimore wrote in an email to the Neighborhood News. That repair cost $300, and Lattimore says that the other areas in the roof with the same detail were inspected as well.
The insulation, however, must be repaired. The vendor that was scheduled by the city to do the repairs said the 5’ wide insulation was a special order with a two-and-a-half week wait time. Lattimore’s department was researching other vendors for the insulation in hopes of speeding up the process.
Tampa District 7 City Councilman Luis Viera, who represents much of New Tampa, says he was informed of the leak the day after it was discovered.
“If something happens out here, I want to know about it,’’ says Viera, a Hunter’s Green resident who offered to do what he could to nudge along the process. “I’ve always worked in the private sector. Things run a little bit slower in the public sector.”
This is the second significant repair done at the New Tampa Recreation Center in the last two months. In May, the turf under the outside playground equipment split at the seams, closing that area for a month.
The turf was replaced under warranty at cost of $16,500.
The rec center has been a point of contention for many New Tampa residents. It has been planned for expansion for five years, but twice has had the money earmarked for the project diverted to another project elsewhere in the city.
Last year, the City Council voted to provide funds for the Cuscaden Park pool in Ybor City instead of the $1.5-million, 14,000-sq.ft. NTRC expansion.
At a recent town hall meeting hosted by Viera at the rec center, local attorney Tracy Falkowitz drew loud applause when she complained to Mayor Bob Buckhorn’s chief of staff Dennis Rogero that the NTRC has been getting shortchanged by the city.
The recent inconveniences caused by the playground being closed and local parents having to drive to Seminole Heights for dance lessons is likely to raise more eyebrows.
“I can say that the way I looked at it, it’s symbolic of the rec center and the need for more attention to the New Tampa area,’’ Viera says. “It needs more attention.”
The City Council should receive Buckhorn’s fiscal year 2017-18 budget on Thursday, July 20. Prior to the need for these playground and roof repairs, however, the new budget was not expected to include any additional money for the NTRC expansion.
For more info, visit TampaGov.net and search “parks-and-recreation.”
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