This image provided by the City of Parkersburg show updated renderings of the proposed community center to be built on the site of the pavilion in City Park. The size has been reduced by more than 10,000 square feet and the exterior changed to better match the surrounding neighborhood, Mayor Tom Joyce said. (Photos Provided)

PARKERSBURG — Updated renderings of the $13 million community center proposed to be built on the site of the City Park pavilion have been released by Parkersburg officials as the clock ticks down on efforts to place the question of its location on an upcoming ballot.

Mayor Tom Joyce recently released images and a description of the project he said reflect input from the community obtained since the project was officially announced in March 2023 and even prior to that. Changes include adjustments to the exterior and decreasing the size of the building by almost 10,000 square feet.

“This is making a bigger, better pavilion with minimal impact to existing greenspace at the park,” he said.

Since the proposal was revealed at a March 2023 public meeting, some residents have questioned the plan to replace the nearly 100-year-old pavilion with the larger structure. Proponents of placing the question on the ballot are planning an event from 1-3 p.m. Sunday at the pavilion to gather signatures to start that process.

But a memo from City Attorney Blaine Myers to City Clerk Connie Shaffer suggests that, due to the nature of the process under municipal code, more than 3,800 signatures would need to be submitted to the clerk’s office by May 15 in order for the question to make the Aug. 1 deadline to appear on the Nov. 5 ballot.

This image provided by the City of Parkersburg show updated renderings of the proposed community center to be built on the site of the pavilion in City Park. The size has been reduced by more than 10,000 square feet and the exterior changed to better match the surrounding neighborhood, Mayor Tom Joyce said. (Photos Provided)

Sherry Dugan, a Democratic candidate for mayor who has been helping organize the petition drive, said she thought they had more time but believes it’s still possible.

“If we have a very successful rally, there’s a very good possibility that we will” make it, she said Friday.

Pickering Associates unveiled its rendering of the proposed activity and recreation center last year as a 58,000-square-foot facility, but Joyce said subsequent feedback led to changes in the appearance and a reduction in size to 47,000 square feet.

“We said, ‘Ok, let’s make the building smaller.’ That’s one concern that we took into consideration,” he said.

In retrospect, the original rendering looked “too modern,” Joyce said.

“We came back with brick, concrete board, to make it more fitting with the park aesthetic and the surrounding neighborhoods,” he said.

The administration also contacted the West Virginia State Historic Preservation Office about the pavilion and was told the structure “lacks the integrity necessary to convey the historical significance to be eligible for the National Register,” the release said.

Critics of placing the new facility in the park have said it could negatively impact the character of City Park and cause problems with traffic and parking, in addition to not offering opportunities for growth or economic development around it.

Some have also argued, as recently as the public forum at the April 17 Parkersburg City Council meeting, that there has not been enough opportunity for public input on the plan.

Joyce pushed back on that in his release about the facility, saying replacing the pavilion has been a part of discussions about improvements to the parks since at least 2017, his first year in office. He cited a listening tour by parks and development officials in late 2022 and 2023 to discuss park improvements as well as a public meeting at the pavilion in May 2023 specifically about the new facility. Pickering later conducted a feasibility study of locations that determined City Park was the best option, in part because the city already owns the property.

Joyce said he thinks some people believe the building is intended to be a civic center, with larger-scale events.

“This is a way, way smaller building than your average quote-unquote civic center, and quite frankly, we can’t afford that … without a tax associated levy with it,” he said, emphasizing he intends for the project to be completed without any additional taxes or fees.

Although council has allocated more than $4.4 million toward the project, the location is technically not set in stone. Finance Director Eric Jiles said during the March budget hearings that there is other action council would have to take before the project could proceed.

At least three council members have expressed opposition to building the facility in the park.

Joyce said he has gotten plenty of positive feedback about the project and its location.

“This is not something that everybody’s against,” he said.

Dugan said she and others like the idea, just not the location.

“We’re not saying we don’t want something like this. This is just to let the citizens decide if the City Park is where you want it to go,” she said.

But the time left to do that could be running out.

Municipal code allows voters to propose ordinances by petition. Such a measure requires signatures of 15% of the city’s registered voters, which would be 3,836.

The petition’s signatures must be certified, Myers said. Once that happens, council would have a 60-day window to decide whether to adopt the ordinance. If they did not, then it would go to the ballot.

The deadline to make the Nov. 5 ballot, according to the Wood County Clerk’s office, is Aug. 1.

“Given the time necessary to certify the validity of signatures on any such petition, and to allow the 60-day window for Council to adopt, in my view any such Initiative Petition would need to be filed with you as City Clerk no later than May 15,” Myers said in the memo to Shaffer.

Joyce said the prospect of the petition will not stop him from moving forward with efforts to bring the project to fruition. Leaving the location up to a ballot initiative would be the equivalent of elected officials deciding to “shirk our job,” he said.

Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com