WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (WAVY) — The newest sports center in Virginia’s Historic Triangle is one step closer to completion.
A groundbreaking ceremony for the facility, which is expected to cost upwards of $80 million, was held Friday.
Local leaders believe this facility will bring hundreds of millions of dollars to the area and it will be felt across all three localities — Williamsburg, James City County and York County.
They say not only will people come for the tournaments, but they’ll also stay at hotels, eat at local restaurants, buy gas and even check out local attractions.
“We have so much to offer here, so I am thrilled that we are going to be bringing visitors to this destination, and I’m thrilled for our residents that are going to get a great gym space,” said James City County Board of Supervisors Chair Ruth Larson.
The 200,000-plus-square-foot Williamsburg Sports Complex will have a turf field, basketball courts, volleyball courts, pickle ball courts, a rock wall and so many other features.
“I’ve done this with my own children,” Larson said. “They’re grown adults now, but my two youngest were collegiate athletes. I went all over the country.”
Larson said not only will the facility be a destination in itself, but the area also has a lot to offer.
You can see the steps of the founding fathers in Colonial Williamsburg, visit Yorktown to see where the Revolutionary War ended, or even take a ride on one of Busch Gardens’ many roller coasters.
“You can find something to do here 365 days a year,” Larson said. “You can’t beat that.”
“You can come here for this tournament itself, but then you can take advantage of so many other cultural activities that provide an education for your children,” said Williamsburg Mayor Doug Pons.
Getting to this point though, hasn’t come without hurdles. Local leaders say it took some time to get people on board with the project, about 20 years.
“Sometimes you have to bring things along slowly and sometimes in local government, it maybe goes a little slower than you would like it to,” Larson said, “but I think once you get three localities on board, you start to get citizens that realize what a great opportunity this is.”
Williamsburg Mayor Doug Pons said they’ve always seen this as an opportunity for growth.
“You think about how mom and dad travel,” Pons said. “Now they’re traveling with their children, taking them to sports tournaments and that type of thing. And the beauty of sports here in Williamsburg is that it doesn’t compete with existing assets, it complements those assets.”
And it provides a unique reason to stay and play.
“It’s going to be one-of-a-kind, apparently going to have the world’s largest rolled-out turf, and I think that’s just one of many exciting attributes that this center will have.”
The communities hope to use the money made off this facility to increase their tax base to get some of the burden off of local tax payers.
“It’s going to do millions and millions of dollars of economic impact for the community,” Larson said. “So, I mean, I’m talking hundreds of millions of dollars, so it’s very, very exciting for all three localities.”
It’s projected to open in 2026 and will be built on a piece of property near the Colonial Williamsburg Visitor Center.