Columbia City Council to vote on new design of Douglass Park basketball courts on Monday night
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Columbia City leaders will vote on proposed improvements to the Douglass Park basketball courts during Monday night's council meeting.
The city has been having discussions about changing the basketball courts since 2023. It was announced in 2023 that the courts would honor Willie Cox, a former assistant coach of the University of Missouri women’s basketball team who died in 2019. Cox also hosted basketball camps at Douglass Park.
Columbia Parks and Recreation voted last month to move forward with an alternative design, after residents pushed back on earlier design concepts claiming it focused too much on the university. If approved, the two courts will be painted blue and gray with white court lines. The west court will also include "Douglass Bulldogs" on each baseline, while the east court would include "Moonlight Hoops – Est. 1989."
According to city documents, the theme and the color blue were the most-popular ideas presented by residents during the public engagement portion of the project. Documents also state Parks and Recreation intends to install a water fountain with a bottle filler on the east side of the basketball court.
That would require an additional $10,000 in park sales tax funding. The water fountain would be open from April through October each year, documents say.
Renovations will cost roughly $900,000, with funding from the University of Missouri, the Veterans United Foundation and the 2021 Park Sales Tax. Planned upgrades also include new rims, LED lighting and a park shelter.
According to the city, $495,000 will come from a 2023 fiscal year grant, $321,000 will come from the park sales tax and $100,000 is being sourced from donations. Improvements to the courts are expected to begin immediately after approval and must be completed by September 2026 to meet grant requirements, documents say. The city is hoping to have the improvements completed by June.
Documents also state that Parks and Recreation has met with funding donors who want to add a Mizzou-themed basketball court honoring Cox in an alternate park location in the city. A decision on that will be made after a decision is made about making improvements to the Douglass Park courts, documents say.
Monday's meeting is at 7 p.m. at Columbia City Hall.
