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Recreation
Work begins on Queen Creek’s recreation and aquatic center
Posted
Queen Creek has broken ground on its new recreation and aquatic center. The state-of-the-art facility is set to open in 2024.
The center will be located at the-under construction Frontier Family Park, located off Signal Butte Road, north of Queen Creek Road.
“In an area where we have 100-degree temperatures more than 100 days of the year, it’s just so thrilling to be able to offer an aquatics center for our residents outdoors, as well as a rec center for our residents indoors,” Queen Creek Mayor Julia Wheatley said during the groundbreaking on Tuesday, May 16.
The new facility will include an indoor recreation center with various sport courts such as basketball, volleyball and pickleball. It will also have a fitness area, teen room, childcare and classrooms. The outdoor aquatic center will include a zero-depth entry play pool, competition/lap pool, lazy river and slides. There will be shared space for locker rooms.
The facility was designed by DWL Architects and is being constructed by Haydon Building Corporation.
“Our recreation and aquatic center is going to be a hub for community activity here in Queen Creek,” Wheatley stated after the ceremony. “Moving projects of this magnitude forward takes a shared vision by former and current council members, resident input and lots of planning.”
The facility was approved in December 2021 following resident input received through the Parks & Recreation Master Plan Update approved in 2018, and a recreation amenity survey that was completed in the summer of 2021.
In the most recent Citizen Survey, taken in 2021, 81% of Queen Creek residents reported visiting a town park in the past year, with 33% visiting a park more than 10 times. In a separate survey conducted earlier that year, 75% of residents reported wanting a town aquatic center and/or multigenerational center.
The 85-acre Frontier Family Park will have a variety of amenities such an inclusive play area, 5-acre fishing lake, lighted ball fields, picnic areas, splash pad and basketball and volleyball courts. Slated to open in early 2024, the park will also feature 24 pickleball courts and a 1.5-mile multiuse path that will span the perimeter of the park.
The town is also in the process of completing phase II of Mansel Carter Oasis Park. The 13-acre expansion is set to open in early 2024 and will include tennis courts, volleyball courts, pickleball courts, pump track, additional restrooms and parking, and passive green space.
The total cost for the three projects is $157 million.
We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.