Potential sites for future southside community center explained. What you need to know
Since Savannah City Council approved a total $8.9 million in funding for a new multi-purpose community center on the southside, city staff has been undergoing site evaluations of three city-owned properties to find the center's eventual location.
There are three properties under consideration: the former Woody's Skate Park, Joseph Tribble Park, and a city-owned lot next to LaVida Golf Club. Each site is located in Windsor Forest, where City Manager Jay Melder says the focus of a southside community center has always been.
The city is using an array of criteria to judge the fit of each site for the proposed center. The city's criteria can be found on this site selection matrix:
Site Selection Matrix by savannahnow.com on Scribd
Split Decision: Savannah's southside is set for a new community center. Residents are split on a location
Here is a little background on each site.
Former Woody's Skate Park
One site is the old Woody's Skate Park at 218 Windsor Road, which has now been filled in with concrete. The site is close to Windsor Forest Elementary School and the Windsor Forest Golden Age Center, which is the building most used for community events in the neighborhood.
This site also has a portion that backs up to Windsor Dog Park. The site is 1.25 acres, which makes it the smallest option out of the three sites being considered. A survey by community group Friends of Tribble Park showed support for a community center at the site, with 73% of 214 respondents supporting the location.
LaVida Property
The LaVida property is a 1.96 acre property adjacent to LaVida Golf Club at 535 Windsor Rd. The club uses a portion of the property, a surface level parking lot, for its patrons.
The City of Savannah and LaVida entered into an easement for the uses of the parking lot in 2016.
The LaVida property also received support from the Friends of Tribble Park survey, with 65% of 212 respondents saying they supported a center at the site. This property is home to a former Windsor Forest Community Pool, which is now filled in with concrete.
Joseph Tribble Park
Tribble Park is a secluded, heavily wooded natural area that was formerly a wastewater treatment site. The park spans 53 acres, with much of it being the man-made pond anchored by a walking trail.
While the entire park is 55 acres, the city has indicated it is looking for about 4 acres total for the community center. Unofficial renderings of the site were obtained by community members, which show the general footprint of the center to be situated next to the playground.
There has been community pushback against putting the new center at Tribble Park, due to residents' wish to keep the park primarily greenspace. The survey by Friends of Tribble Park, which is one of the groups leading the push, found 86% of 213 respondents did not support placing the center at the park.
Evan Lasseter is the city and county government reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at ELasseter@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Potential sites for future southside Savannah community center explained
