The city of Colorado Springs’ quest to find a new operator for the Westside Community Center continues, as the historic former school site will not revert to its original use as a school again, according to Nicole Spindler, procurement services manager.

An unnamed charter school had risen to the top of proposals the city received for the new life of the three-building site at 1628 W. Bijou St.

City staff now will see if the second-highest ranked proposer is still interested in operating the center, Spindler said.

The city expects to conclude negotiations this month, she said.

Woodmen Valley Chapel has run the Westside Community Center for the past decade, and notified the city’s Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department that it would not renew its contract beyond this year.

The Center for Strategic Ministry, an arm of the Woodmen Valley Chapel, which serves about 10,000 worshippers on five campuses in Colorado Springs, has occupied part of the blocklong site and has acted as the property manager.

The ministry takes care of the buildings, provides volunteers for some programs and leases rooms to a host of organizations and businesses.

Those include independent counselors, artists, dance instructors, fitness coaches, YMCA children’s camps, Silver Key Senior Services’ meals program, AARP tax services, a Westside Cares food pantry, Visiting Nurses Association clinics and others.

Neighbors have been able to reserve indoor space for birthday or retirement parties, and outside is a community garden with 52 plots and a contemporary playground.

The ministry took over operations in 2010 during the recession, to provide a relief service to the city, The Rev. Stu Davis, pastor of impact ministries, told The Gazette last year. But the group never intended for it to be a longterm project.

Woodmen Valley Chapel will continue to operate the property through this year, Spindler said. The contract expires in early 2022.

City officials last August called for proposals for the property’s reuse, saying the existing format might no longer be the best fit, as the neighborhood’s demographics are changing from older to younger households.

That drew criticism and concern that residents would lose the space that seniors as well as families have come to rely on for services, such as the food pantry, free meals and exercise programs.

Spindler said city officials are “aware of the ongoing concerns regarding the future of the Westside Community Center.”

More than 100 programs hold events, activities and educational programs for residents, Davis had said, with up to 6,000 people a month using the facility, pre-pandemic.

The city’s goals, as described in the request for proposals, are to:

• secure a financially stable entity that will manage, operate and maintain the Westside Community Center;

• have the center support and foster activities that will provide beneficial services to the neighborhood and the community as a whole; and

• reduce the level of maintenance and capital demands on the city by including a viable capital improvement program for the facility.

The city received four initial requests for information about possible makeovers, which led to a formal request for proposals, Spindler said. Procurement rules prohibit her from disclosing more information about the proposals until a finalist is selected, she added.

A committee with members from around the community and city staff evaluated the proposals.