, and in less than two years, residents of Original Aurora will see the Moorhead Recreation Center transformed from a cramped, 5,000 square foot building to a two-story, 30,000 square foot facility with an indoor aquatic center.
City council approved the 2015 budget Oct. 27, which included a loan of $9 million for the Parks, Recreation and Open Space Department to begin designing and expanding the rec center.
Moorhead was built in 1975 at 2390 Havana St. and for years it has been short on space to serve the who use the center every month.
“This was a great collaboration of everyone getting together in the community to make this happen,” said Ruben Medina, supervisor of Moorhead Recreation Center. “They are the real heroes of this, and I’m very excited to see it come together now.”
According to officials in the parks and recreation department, the new facility will be unveiled around fall 2016.
Preliminary designs show plans for a massive new gymnasium with a second-level running track that will replace the quarter-sized gym in the center now, a new teen center, locker rooms, an expanded workout room, more parking and more meeting space.
The small outdoor swimming pool will also be expanded and brought inside the new building, and a new leisure pool will be added.
The parks and recreation department is planning a celebration of the vote on Wednesday.
“At this party we will recognize community leaders who have turned dreams into a full-fledged movement in north Aurora,” Tom Barrett, director of Aurora’s parks, recreation and open space department said in a news release. “Local children have created gifts they would like to give to city council members at the event.”
Barrett said his department has developed a five-year funding plan that will pay back the city’s loan in annual increments through Colorado lottery dollars from the Conservation Trust Fund.
The Stapleton Foundation in Denver, , will also help raise $3 million over the next five years to support health and wellness programs and operational costs of the new space.
Megan Mitchell: 303-954-2650, mmitchell@denverpost.com or twitter.com/Mmitchelldp
Moorhead recreation center renovation celebration:
5 to 7 p.m. Oct. 29 at Moorhead Recreation Center, 2390 Havana St.
