Roger, a member of the community center group, told the Canton City Commission that the volunteer-led effort to build a new community center has been active roughly 12 years and that contractors delayed bids during supply and labor shortages.

Roger said the group received a Morton Buildings bid on May 6 that came in near $2.6 million, about $900,000 above earlier estimates; a later, scaled-down Morton bid dated July 15 reduced the price to approximately $2.1 million but still included site development, parking, sidewalks and landscaping. The committee has raised roughly $850,000 and had a $500,000 interest-free, three-year loan offer tied to the Morton package — a total the presenter described as about $1.3 million — and said the loan and offer are no longer applicable after the group declined Morton’s latest bid.

The group said the Morton design included structural and kitchen features the committee deemed essential; Morton’s revised bid cut some kitchen items while keeping exterior site features. The committee rejected that bid and informed Morton, Roger said, and the group retains the blueprints but said they cannot be used directly for a public competitive bid because the original procurement path did not open the plans to a public bid process.

Commissioners and members of the commission’s audience discussed options: some commissioners said city involvement likely would trigger the need to rebid the project as a public contract and therefore to treat the project as a city project rather than a private one. Commissioners repeatedly raised gym space as a frequently requested feature from residents and suggested that adding a gym would change the program and likely the funding mechanism. One commissioner described a recent visit with the group to a comparable center in Doon to see gym configuration and operations.

Several commissioners expressed interest in continuing the effort but said they need more information before committing city funds. One commissioner offered to serve on a proposed task force; the commission agreed to place a task-force item on the agenda for a vote at the next commission meeting in two weeks so membership and a formal charge could be decided.

Speakers from the community group who attended the Morton review meeting were identified in remarks as John Anderson, Leanne Anderson and Kathy McNulty. A Morton Buildings representative also attended a bid review meeting, according to the presenter.

No formal action or funding commitment was made at the meeting. Commissioners asked staff to return with options and clarified that if the city became the primary funder the project would need to be rebid and handled under city procurement rules. The group said it will continue fundraising and that donations remain welcome.

The commission directed staff to prepare materials and an agenda item to consider forming a task force and to bring possible procurement and funding pathways back for formal consideration at a subsequent meeting.