LAKE HAVASU CITY – The pandemic impacted closure of Havasu Fitness presents Lake Havasu City with an opportunity to fulfill its plan to operate its own municipal court facility. The city has been leasing court space from Mohave County since August, 2019 when Mohave County and the city deconsolidated their operations in the county building on College Street.
City Manager Jess Knudson, during the August 11 council meeting, said its owners are interested in selling the 1.6-acre parcel and 19,000 sq. ft. Fitness Center building at 92 Acoma Boulevard for $3-million.
“This opportunity presented itself just a few months ago. It’s a unique situation because this is a property that is directly adjacent to the existing city complex,” Knudson said. “The property, in my mind, is in a valuable location. It would allow for the expansion of the existing city campus.”
Knudson said a $3 million acquisition and possibly up to $1.5 million for renovations would represent savings from building brand new at an estimated cost of $7.5 million.
“This is a win-win for the taxpayer. It creates a good opportunity that’s just adjacent to city hall and out of all the options that we’ve looked at, we looked at existing buildings, we’ve looked at leasing buildings, building buildings, building buildings on the campus, all sorts of things,” said Mayor Cal Sheehy. “This is the best opportunity.”
Other council members also spoke and voted in favor of moving forward with the acquisition deemed prudent by consensus. Knudson said the transaction is expected to close on Friday, August 28.
Knudson said it would likely take a couple of years for design and renovation to repurpose the facility for municipal court use.
- Dave Hawkins
