After years of preparation, construction on the new Enterprise Recreation and Aquatics Center is scheduled to begin in January.
The new facility will be roughly 110,000 sq/ft, making it the largest municipal facility in the city. To put this size project in perspective, the new facility including the pool will be three times the size of the Enterprise Civic Center and four times the size of City Hall.
“What we have over there now and what you are going to see in the future is just the difference between night and day,” Enterprise Mayor William E. Cooper said. “When you look at it and you see what’s going to be in the place of the old facility, it’s really going to show that we are moving forward. Enterprise is the City of Progress.”
The current facility was built in 1958 and served a lot of quality recreation opportunities for the Enterprise community.
“The M. N. “Jug” Brown Recreation Center needed a lot of updates. It just couldn’t hold the demand and meet the needs of what we wanted to provide,” Director of Community Services and Recreation Billy Powell said. “But it did its job and we are grateful for it, but it was time to make new.”
“This has been something we have talked about for the past 20-some years,” Mayor Cooper said. “This time, it got on the horizon, it stayed on the agenda, it got passed by City Council and here we are.”
The new facility will include a total of five indoor basketball courts, which can easily be converted into 10 volleyball or 10 pickleball courts. Construction will tie into the existing Moose Hope Gym, which will also undergo renovations and a modernization.
Other features of the new facility include meeting and lobby area, cardio exercise area with state-of-the-art equipment, two large activity rooms, locker rooms, administration/office space and storage.
Outside, Enterprise residents will be able to enjoy a general swim/competition pool with six, 25-yard lanes as well as a large beach entry pool with play structure, as well as a pool party room. The pool will be able to be used for competitive and recreation swimming.
The project was awarded to the lowest responsive bidder, Whaley Construction Company for $23,074,155 during the Nov. 15, 2022, City Council meeting. The city also received other bids from Rabren General Contractors, Wyatt Sasser Construction and Bear Brothers.
Demolition of the current recreation center, pool and maintenance buildings will happen over the next few weeks.
“We are excited for this project to move forward over the next few weeks. We ask the public for patience as we work through it,” City Engineer and Director of Public Works Barry Mott said. “We will keep everyone updated as we go along, but we anticipate this project will be complete within two years. We have a lot to look forward to around the City of Enterprise and I hope the citizens are just as excited as we are.”
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