SANDUSKY — An 18 month-long wait for Cedar Point’s $42 million state-of-the art indoor athletic facility is nearly over.
On Wednesday, company officials gave the media a peek inside the new two-story Cedar Point Sports Center that opens early next month even as work crews buzzed about placing the finishing touches on the 145,000-square-foot complex located on U.S. 6 in Perkins Township about 2½ miles from Cedar Point.
Boasting 10 basketball courts that convert into 20 volleyball courts, plus a separate “championship” court, a one-eighth mile running track, 11 climbing walls, a ninja warrior course, three party rooms, and an adjoining sports medicine facility run by Firelands Regional Health System, the Sports Center was designed to complement Cedar Point’s outdoor Sports Force Parks next door.
Both sites, although separately run, are part of the amusement park’s strategy to lure more people to Sandusky via organized sports.
Athletes attending the Sports Center or Sports Force Park, which opened in 2018, get a complimentary ticket to Cedar Point and special rates for family members to attend the park.
Cedar Point, of course, is now closed for the season. But the Sport Center will host its first event, a basketball tournament, starting Jan. 11.
“If anyone wants a part-time job mopping this floor, let us know. We are hiring,” Wes Hall, general manager of the complex, said while gazing out at the 78,000-square-foot hardwood basketball/volleyball courts that dominate the center and main floor of the facility.
Though owned by Cedar Point, the center will be managed by a separate firm, Sports Facilities Management of Clearwater, Fla.
There are 9 basketball courts in the center area, each of which convert into two volleyball courts.
But the area has drop-down dividers that provide space for numerous other activities, including wrestling, cheerleading, dancing, futsal (a form of indoor soccer), and pickleball, Mr. Hall added.
The goal, officials said, is to utilize the facility year-round, not just when Cedar Point is operating.
However, the jewel of the facility is its “championship” court — a separate basketball/volleyball court surrounded by retractable bleachers with seating for about 700 spectators. Mr. Hall said that court will have its own Jumbotron TV screen for spectator viewing.
Also on the main floor is what Mr. Hall called the family entertainment center. It features three rooms (named after Cedar Point roller coasters) for parties or meetings and a concessions area with seating.
Near the front entrance of the facility are 11 colorful climbing walls and a Ninja Warrior course — a huge fad that lets athletes test their skills on a variety of obstacles while competing against the clock. The course will be laser-timed.
On a second floor will be viewing areas and a one-eighth mile three-lane walking track.
Mr. Hall said an aspect Cedar Point is most proud of is the center’s affiliation with Firelands to establish a sports wellness/medicine and physical therapy center connected to the new athletic facility.
The medical facility will be called the Lee C. Jewett Sports Medicine Center after a longtime Cedar Fair executive and member of the Firelands Regional Health System board. Mr. Jewett gave a $1 million donation to the facility.
Athletes from the center and Sandusky area residents can receive treatment at the medical facility, which is expected to open in early January. It has a state-of-the-art SwimEx therapy pool with underwater treadmill, plus two plunge pools.
Sports enhancement programs will include golf fitness, athletic performance and strength conditioning, and reflex training.
First Published December 17, 2019, 7:59 p.m.
