For fourth time, Cedar Rapids seeks redevelopment proposals for former Ambroz building

For the fourth time in the last seven years, Cedar Rapids officials are seeking redevelopment proposals for the former Ambroz Recreation Center in southeast Cedar Rapids. But based on public comments at the Feb. 13 Cedar Rapids City Council meeting, the city may have new alternatives to consider for the historic building. The city council voted unanimously Feb. 13 to issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the disposition of the city-owned Ambroz Recreation Center at 2000 Mount Vernon Rd. SE. Built in 1903 and operated until 1973 as Buchanan Elementary School, the building was purchased by the city in 1975 and housed the Ambroz Recreation Center until 2016, when the center was closed and replaced by the Northwest Recreation Center near Harrison Elementary School. The city has previously issued three RFP’s for the site – in 2017, 2019 and 2022. In both 2017 and 2019, redevelopment proposals for the site were submitted and subsequently withdrawn. But since the city recently received an inquiry for housing at the site, Cedar Rapids community development planner Adam Lindenlaub said another RFP for the property was warranted. During a public hearing on the issue, Benjamin Clark, a resident of the nearby Vernon Heights neighborhood, presented a petition with 121 area residents’ signatures, asking city officials to reconsider using the facility as a recreation center to serve the city’s southwest side. “The redevelopment of Ambroz Recreation Center will provide much-needed access to wraparound extracurricular activities for students who lack transportation options to travel across town to other such centers,” Mr. Clark said. “It will serve as an after-school and weekend hub of activities for families across the southeast side, offering a safe and inclusive space for recreation, learning, and socializing. By transforming the Ambroz Recreation Center into a modern recreation facility, we will not only preserve a valuable community asset, but also contribute to the vibrancy of our neighborhood. This new facility will serve as a beacon of hope and resilience, symbolizing our commitment to rebuilding and strengthening the southeast side community.” Mr. Clark also shared comments on the proposal from local preservation advocate Maura Pilcher. “Growing up in the 1980s, I went to dance classes and art classes there,” Ms. Pilcher wrote. “I could walk to Ambroz on my own. Now children in the neighborhood must find transportation to the Northwest Recreation Center to participate in these activities. We need equitable resources for all members of the community, a place to practice basketball, take yoga, congregate and experience art. Public transportation is not strong enough in Cedar Rapids to co-locate all these resources to the Northwest Rec Center. If you want to give every community member these opportunities, they need to be offered at the neighborhood level.” Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell encouraged Mr. Clark to share his ideas with the city’s community development team for possible consideration. Neighborhood resident Jennifer Trembath also encouraged the council to consider the neighborhood’s needs when reviewing redevelopment plans for the Ambroz site. “We all have lots of children around there,” Ms. Trembath said, “and we would just like to see something that might benefit them instead of … something that could deteriorate the value and the hope of our neighborhood. So just consider all the people in the neighborhood and how we all really love and appreciate our community.” Councilmember Ashley Vanorny said she’s received inquiries about redeveloping the Ambroz building as either a privately-owned recreation facility or for public housing. “Housing is a need that benefits every community,” Ms. Vanorny said. “I just hope that we get more of these ideas and finally have something that sticks with this project.” Under the RFP approved by the council, an informational meeting will be held Feb. 16, with redevelopment proposals due March 15. A committee including representatives of financial institutions, non-competing developers, the nearby neighborhood and the city’s Historic Preservation Commission will review those proposals in the third or fourth week of March. The council would then consider any proposals at their meeting April 9, and if a proposal were chosen, a development agreement would be negotiated this summer. Development objectives for this property include a financially viable redevelopment based on current market conditions, a plan that encourages investment consistent with the goals of the Mount Vernon Road Corridor Action Plan, and a “preference for retaining (a) unique sense of place through renovation and/or new construction.” The Ambroz Recreation Center building, totaling just under 19,000 square feet, sits on a site totaling approximately 1.5 acres, city officials said. It’s designated for urban medium intensity development under the city’s land use plan, but is currently zoned public institutional based on its most recent usage and would need to be rezoned if other uses were proposed. The urban medium density designation would allow development of single-unit or multi-unit residential projects at the site.