Centerville Athletic Department Announces Plans for New Athletic Complex

Dayton, Ohio (WDTN) — The Centerville Athletic Division has launched a fundraising campaign with the goal of building a new athletic complex.

The district plans to build facilities to house students, coaches and community members. Department officials hosted an open house Wednesday night to kick off the fundraiser.

Prior to the pandemic, the school district was approached by groups interested in donating to baseball and softball facilities. Talks had been on hold for the past three years, but with new donors coming forward, district leaders felt it was time to resume talks.

Centerville Athletic Director Rob Demento said: “The complex will not only create new spaces, but also make existing spaces available for use by other programs.”

About $3.5 million has been put into the project so far, according to Dement. Plans call for the complex to be built in phases unless a total of $9.36 million can be raised before groundbreaking.

Phase 1 The 21,414-square-foot indoor turf practice facility includes batting cages, four locker rooms, meeting rooms, and restrooms accessible during outdoor sporting events. The space can also be used by local youth teams for practice. Phase 1 costs approximately $4.93 million.

Phase 2 The 18,758-square-foot area includes a weight room and wrestling practice room, as well as locker rooms, restrooms and showers. With the addition of women’s wrestling to the school year, the CHS alone has more than 80 of her wrestlers competing for limited space. The space can also be used by the local youth wrestling team for practice. Phase 2 costs approximately $3.93 million.

Phase 3 With 2,000 square feet of indoor storage space exposed to the elements under the bleachers of soccer stadiums, it is now being replaced more frequently to store items such as high jump pit equipment at track and field stadiums . Phase 3 will cost approximately $484,000.

This project is expected to take several years.Click here for details of the fundraising campaign here.