HOLLAND, MI (WHTC News) - While much of the attention will center on a proposed amendment that would include sexual preference and gender identity as protected classes in the city’s anti-discrimination ordinance, the Holland City Council tonight will also consider possibly changing ward boundaries based on last year’s census, dealing with vacant and abandoned buildings, and a “tired” Holland Municipal Stadium that may be in line for a freshening up.
Four city leaders briefed the media yesterday on a possible renovation of the 32-year-old facility. It has been a topic of discussion for several years, but talks have intensified as new baseball, softball and soccer facilities for Hope College, have been built nearby. A proposed non-profit consortium of the city, the college and Holland Public Schools would raise funds to pay for artificial turf, new dressing facilities, and other improvements, with a possibility of beginning the improvements as early as next spring.
City Manager Soren Wolff says that the stadium is a key element in the growth of Holland’s Eastern Gateway. Dr. James Bultman, president of Hope College, feels that this consortium would be a natural progression of the ongoing partnership between the three entities. Holland School Superintendent Brian Davis believes that such a unified effort can lead to great things. Mayor Kurt Dykstra supports renovation rather than replacement.
The Hope College Board has already endorsed the consortium proposal, and the Board of Education has the item on its Monday evening meeting agenda.
