Construction crews are entering the final stages of building a new 49,000-sq. ft. recreation facility on Berthoud’s west side, complete with multiple swimming pools, a gymnasium and fully-equipped fitness center.
The building is the centerpiece of the 59-acre Waggener Farm Park project, a long-planned community hub for the fast-growing Northern Colorado town. Once completed, the campus will also include several athletic fields, playgrounds and trails for residents.
Town officials toured the building on Thursday following the installation of its final steel support beam. Trustee Jeff Hindman, a 25-year resident, said the space is badly needed.
“We don’t have any gym space,” Hindman said. “Our ball fields are so limited that I know of a little league girl’s basketball coach that had to find space in a barn east of town to practice.”
Officials secured funding for the facility through larger-than-expected local sales tax revenue, driven by population growth. Work began last spring. The estimated cost for the project is roughly $32 million, according to the project’s design firm.
Chris Kirk, Berthoud’s town administrator, said the community has roughly doubled in size in the past six years to around 11,000 residents — a number yet to be confirmed by 2020 census numbers.
“This is a major milestone for the town in terms of our growth and development as a community,” Kirk said. “The rec center is going to be a community gathering place that I think is really transformative for decades to come.”
The project’s progress comes as Berthoud prepares to break ground on several new commercial shopping districts and revamp its open space preservation plan.
Final construction on the farm park is expected to last until early October. Town officials haven’t released an official opening date, but expect it to be operational by the end of 2021.
