BUTLER TWP — Matt Clement, Butler High School boys varsity basketball coach, has proposed building a sports complex on Butler School District property.

He and his business partner Daryl Patten recently met with school board athletic committee members to see if there is an interest in building an air-inflated complex on school property that could serve both the community and Butler students.

Clement made clear they’re not asking the school district for financial help with the building. He said it’s more about letting sports teams and the school use the facility in exchange for it being built on district property.

“We aren’t going to the school district asking them to pay to put this up. We aren’t asking for any money from them,” he said.

“All we’re asking for is a potential landing spot for it because it’ll be so beneficial to them. And then some kind of a partnership where they get access to it at a certain time, maybe if it’s past that certain time at a preferred rate.

“But there are so many variables that need worked out.”

Who would maintain the building and how Clement and Patten would run a business with a school district partnership are all variables that would have to be decided.

Two years ago, Clement proposed the complex be built in a residential area in Highfield, but neighbors and community members spoke out against it. They argued the complex would bring too much noise and traffic to the quiet neighborhood and that property values could go down if a complex were built.

While that site hasn’t been completely ruled out, Clement and Patten are looking at other options.

However, an exact location on school district property where the complex could be built has not been discussed.

Superintendent Michael Strutt said the facility could be a great resource if they’re able to work out all of the details.

“Personally, I think it would be a great idea if we could. The community could benefit. The school district could benefit,” Strutt said.

But so far, he said, “All we’ve done is introduce the idea and how it could be mutually beneficial.”

Clement said he knows sports teams can benefit if such a complex were a district resource.

“As a coach, I see how badly it’s needed,” he said. “Like right now for basketball, I probably couldn’t get open gym time for varsity basketball if I wanted to, where other school districts right now have open gyms. We have such a logjam up there.

“It could be a potential landing spot because it’s something that the high school needs, and they don’t have the money to do it,” he said.

It would not only help school sports teams, but it would provide another place for gym classes to go, for the band to practice, and maybe even a place to hold events if it rains, he said.

The complex would include an indoor baseball field and a training center for other sports, such as soccer, lacrosse, softball, basketball and football. It would also be home to the Clement Baseball Academy.

Clement was a major league pitcher for about a decade.

Clement and Patten are doing more research to see if an exchange with the school district is a possibility while Strutt and board members have talked with the district solicitor to discuss the proposal.

In the end, though, it is an agreement that would have to be beneficial for the school and the business.

“There’s a lot of dynamics as far as how we can make the business still work, but while giving a good portion of it to the school,” Clement said.

“We’re trying to make this work for both sides, not just for us. And if it doesn’t work for both sides, it’s just not going to happen.”