With a public referendum for extending the current sales tax levy on the horizon in September, the Pella City Council is preparing for construction of a new indoor recreation facility.

A resolution on the agenda for this week’s Pella City Council meeting is for an architectural and engineering services agreement with Shive-Hattery. A 12-member ad-hoc committee formed in April to assist the council with design, components, and operations of the proposed project gave Shive-Hattery as their top recommendation as the firm after receiving ten total proposals and evaluating those choices.

The proposed architectural contract includes design, bid, and construction observation services for a 90,000 square foot recreation facility located at the Pella Sports Park that could include three full-sized gymnasiums, an indoor walking track, competition swimming pool, and other features largely driven by fundraising.

If the current Local Option Sales and Service Tax is not extended by voters on September 13th, the agreement could be terminated with seven days of notice.

The Pella City Council will consider the proposal at their meeting Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the Pella Public Safety Complex, which can also be viewed online.