SPRINGDALE -- The City Council approved Monday night an extension of a lease for the use of the former All-Star Sports Arena.
Bubba Carpenter, owner of Next Level Baseball Academy, has agreed to pay a monthly rent of $4,090 through June, said Mayor Doug Sprouse.
Carpenter had a contract with the previous owner that was due to expire in June. He also had commitments with parents of the players that trained through his academy, Sprouse explained.
The rental agreement also limits the academy's access to only about a quarter of the inside of the building.
"That will give him time to wrap up and move his things out of there. And I thought it was a good thing," Sprouse said of the agreement. "We've got to get in there. We can start moving our fitness equipment in."
Contracts and agreements for as many as 23 others who used the arena were based on a month-by-month basis and expired in February, Sprouse explained.
The city agreed in December to buy the former All-Star Sports Arena at 1906 Cambridge St. to be used as the city's new recreation center. The purchase price was $4.1 million for the facility owned by the Arkansas Warehouse Group.
The city sold its current Recreation Center at 600 Ash Street in Murphy Park to the Springdale School District for $2.2 million. The district will use the building as its alternative learning center starting with the school year in the fall.
Colby Fulfer, a member of the council, asked if the city couldn't charge a lower rent for the building, such as $2,500 or $3,000, in an effort to help a Springdale businessman. He noted that Carpenter also will incur some costs for relocation.
Bill Mock, director of the city's Parks and Recreation Department, noted that the rent for Next Level had been raised in October to $5,150 a month.
"There's going to be a lot of this to settle as we move through this process," Sprouse said. "And we know not all of it's going to be smooth. People might not get the answers they want right now."
Council members agreed to forward for approval the rental agreement as written.
NW News on 02/05/2019