OWENSBORO, KY (WFIE) -
A decision was made Tuesday on the future of the old National Guard Armory. The building will be demolished, but what will replace it?
We now know that two groups submitted proposals to the City of Owensboro. One of those groups was the Elizabeth Mundy Senior Center Board of Directors. The other was the Owensboro- Daviess County Tennis Association.
Both the senior center and the tennis association have big plans for Moreland Park.
"It does include a 60,000 square foot building. It does have an indoor walking facility. It's around $10 million dollars," said Tom Vittitow with the Mundy Center.
For an indoor tennis facility, Phil Clark with the tennis association said, "We're thinking somewhere between $1.2 and $1.5 million."
On Tuesday, the city commission heard both plans and decided.
"Moreland Park is our tennis center. That's where most of our courts are. Gave the tennis association the right to move forward with raising money to build an indoor tennis facility there. Gave them six months to do so," said Owensboro Mayor Ron Payne.
"We're very pleased with that. If we have rain issues, it'll be very convenient to move over. Allows tennis for the juniors, for the kids to continue in the winter," Clark said.
"We don't have a problem for that. We think it'll work out for everybody. We'd be tickled to death to even share some space with the tennis association. We're not shutting any doors," Vittitow said.
The tennis association must raise $500,000 in six months. If they can do that, the city will match that money helping to build a new center. The city's money will come from selling the current indoor tennis facility that will be torn down within the next year for downtown development.
"Will also continue to work with the Elizabeth Mundy Center to find them a suitable site for their new senior citizens center once they raise the money to construct one," Mayor Payne said.
One thing is for sure, the old armory is coming down.
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