Columbus City Council voted 8-1 this week to send another $529,460 toward NexusPark, the sprawling former FairOaks Mall site being reborn as a health, wellness and sports campus. The money will cover roof and skylight repairs over common areas, HVAC work above offices and meeting rooms, and continued build-out of the AEI Fitness Center. It passed easily on second reading, but not before a fight over whether the city's newest civic showpiece is getting attention that an aging community hub across town badly needs.
The appropriation, requested by the parks department, draws on leftover money from an $11.5 million park bond the city issued in 2022 to build offices and community areas at NexusPark, according to The Republic. Parks Director Nikki Murphy told council the remaining bond funds had already been encumbered, meaning the money was effectively already spoken for and would revert to the state if council did not act within a certain window, per the outlet's reporting.
That mechanical detail turned out to matter. The ordinance was first considered on July 21 and failed on a 5-4 vote, but council members Jay Foyst, Kent Anderson and Grace Kestler all switched their votes to yes on second reading after learning the funds were already committed and at risk of reverting. The shift turned a losing measure into an 8-1 approval.
One Councilor Holds the Line
District 2 Councilor Elaine Hilber remained the lone no vote both times. She has repeatedly raised concerns that NexusPark is being prioritized over the Donner Center, the city's 1948 community hub that has struggled with deferred maintenance for years, the report notes.
Those concerns are not new. Donner Center opened to the public in 1948 after philanthropist William H. Donner donated the building and adjacent pool facilities to the city in 1947, according to The Republic's earlier coverage. A municipal assessment in May 2023 found the building suffers from pervasive roof leaks, outdated electrical and HVAC systems, and restrooms that cannot be modified to meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards, the same outlet reported at the time. That assessment concluded renovation of Donner Center was not financially feasible, and city officials now consider a full rebuild more likely than a fix-up.
The tension Hilber has raised reflects a broader pattern of successive funding requests for NexusPark. Columbus City Council approved an additional $3 million from the general fund for the project in October 2023, split between mall roof repairs and fieldhouse structural steel reinforcement, on a 4-2 vote, and the Columbus Board of Works separately awarded a $6.7 million contract that November for parking lot lighting, paving, outdoor park spaces and a segment of the People Trail.
What the New Money Buys
Beyond building repairs, the latest appropriation funds further build-out of the AEI Fitness Center, named for donor Analytical Engineering Inc., whose CEO is Angie May. Murphy said the expansion will provide more square footage for another tenant in a prime location at NexusPark, a move intended to increase revenue for the campus. The fitness center build-out will also support partnerships with Indiana University Columbus and the Indiana Sentinels, and will include space for youth programming.
Murphy told council the $529,460 appropriation would help make NexusPark more sustainable going forward. City officials have said the campus's master plans, developed over two iterations across a decade, were rooted in community feedback that called for expanded indoor recreation, a true community center for Columbus, and expanded sports and events tourism.
A Campus Built in Phases
NexusPark traces back to December 2018, when the city partnered with Columbus Regional Health and the Heritage Fund to buy the 35.36-acre former mall property for $5.9 million. By June 2022, the multi-phase project's total cost was estimated at nearly $92 million, blending city bonds, private healthcare investment and state grants. The 150,000-square-foot Circle K Fieldhouse, funded through a separate $27 million lease rental bond, opened in March 2024 with 100,000 square feet of turf and convertible courts for basketball, volleyball and pickleball.
The state has since backed the project further. The Indiana Economic Development Corporation designated NexusPark's expansion as South Central Indiana's first READI 2.0 regional project in September 2024, and Circle K Fieldhouse extended its partnership with Indiana University Columbus last June for three more years as the home venue for Crimson Pride basketball, cheer and dance teams. As Hoodline reported, a 13-acre site nearby has drawn a bidding war from developers hoping to cash in on the campus's momentum.
For now, the roof leaks and outdated systems at Donner Center remain unresolved, and Hilber's objection signals that the debate over how Columbus divides its limited repair dollars between old and new civic assets is far from settled.
