Ground broken for Kent County sports complex

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DETurf_Schematic-1Project leaders and  officials formally  broke ground on the $24 million DE Turf Sports Complex (Kent County Regional Sports Complex) in Frederica Thursday morning.

The 84-acre,  facility, will feature  ten synthetic turf and two natural grass fields for sports, such as soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, rugby and ultimate Frisbee. The site hopes to attract teams and events along the East Coast.

DE Turf will have parking, comfort stations, lighting and scoreboards, space for vendors, training areas and a fieldhouse, created in partnership with Highwater Management (a subsidiary of SoDel Concepts), that will have culinary offerings for athletes.

The Greater Kent Committee championed the effort behind DE Turf and established the Kent County Regional Sports Complex Corporation, a 501c3 overseen by a board of directors and newly-hired Executive Director Rob Smith. The complex is also part of an effort to spur economic activity in a county that has seen a sharp decline in attendance from its two NASCAR weekends.

A convention center has also been proposed in the county.

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The KCRSC hired Becker Morgan Group to design and Richard Y. Johnson & Son to build the $24-million facility. Construction work started this winter. The project is slated for completion in spring 2017.

Located about 10 miles south of Dover, the site is close to 2,200 hotel rooms and easily accessible to cities near the Interstate 95 corridor.

“The affect DE Turf will have on sports tourism in Delaware will be huge,” said Bill Strickland, chairman of the Kent County Regional Sports Complex. “Sports tourism was a $9-billion industry across the country in 2014. We know this project is an economic engine that will ensure Delaware is well-positioned to get a sizeable piece of that.”

“DE Turf has the potential to be one of the top sports complexes on the East Coast in the next five years,” said Rob Smith, executive director of the complex. “Our competitive advantages will make this a go-to location for large-scale events and attract thousands of visitors to the area.”

Kent County Levy Court President P. Brooks Banta was on-hand for Thursday’s event and echoed the sentiment the complex will have a major economic impact on central Delaware. Levy Court has offered continual support to the project.

A feasibility study conducted during the process of securing funding estimated the impact of the facility at $18 million annually after ten years. A different study completed by the University of Delaware around the same time said its construction would employ 180 people, and more than 2,000 jobs would be available during camp and tournament seasons – equivalent to 210 full-time, continuing jobs for the area.

State Sen. Brian Bushweller, D-Dover, helped secure $3.2 million from Delaware’s infrastructure fund for the project.

“This facility will create significant economic activity in Kent County,”  Bushweller said. “The county’s state legislators have always known that and provided bi-partisan backing for DE Turf. DelDOT has also stepped up to help make the project a success.”

In March DelDOT broke ground on the new South Frederica Overpass on DE 1. Construction on the interchange is expected to be complete in 2018. DelDOT first proposed the overpass in 1996. Once complete, the overpass will provide vehicle access to DE Turf.

“The overpass will make getting into the sports complex both easy and safe,” said DelDOT Secretary Jennifer Cohan. “More broadly, it will make traveling on Route 1 better for tourists and Delawareans alike.”

Event coordinators and sports league officials interested in more information on DE Turf  can  contact Rob Smith at 302-257-6813 or rsmith@deturfcomplex.org.

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