The city of Selma is hoping to enter the planning phase of a new marina soon.

The deadline for submitting plans for a new marina building, which is Tuesday at 4:30 p.m., will get the city one step closer to making the new facility a reality, Selma Park and Recreation Department director Elton Reece said.

Submitting plans is simple, he said.

“All they have to do is take whatever proposals they have into the mayor’s office and he will take them to the recreation committee,” Reece said. “We will go from there.”

Once the plans are submitted, Reece said the committee would collaborate on how they want to proceed.

“At the time of the cutoff the city will begin working on which direction they want to go,” he said.

The Selma Boating Association gathered recently to raise awareness for the need for a new marina. During the meeting, Selma Boating Association member Judy Twilley said the lack of a marina has definitely hurt the city.

Before the Marina burned, she said there was a steady stream of boaters doing business there.

“When a marina was here, there would be people coming constantly,” she said. “It burned down in 2009, but you can see there is still definitely a need for it. These people need a place to get together.”

The old marina was destroyed by fire in September 2009.

The city has $100,000 budgeted from a bond issue to go toward the new project, which Reece said would be similar to the old marina with a few improvements.

Those who submit plans, Selma Mayor George Evans said, will also need to have a strategy to supplement the $100,000.

“We have that money for the project, but it isn’t going to be enough,” he said. “We’ll also need to hear what their plans are to raise money or throw in money to go with the money marked for the marina.”

The submitted plans will not be the final phase of the project, Evans said, but it could help get the ball rolling.

“This is not the end, it is just the beginning,” Evans said. “If we could, we’d like to have the marina in place this time next year.”