Proposed Wahoo Community Recreation Center
The proposed recreation center is intended to provide capacity for Wahoo’s current and future recreational needs.
- Spaces and amenities have been identified and prioritized to accommodate both current programming and anticipated future needs.
- The initial design includes shared court space to accommodate two full-sized basketball courts and four pickleball courts, a larger cardio/weight room, an elevated walking/running track, and a family-focused aquatic space.
- Additional amenities and programming spaces may be included as funding allows.
Community leaders nearly 50 years ago had the foresight to repurpose the former high school as a community center. Today, Wahoo has a similar opportunity to thoughtfully plan for the community’s future needs.
The site for the proposed recreation center provides the necessary space for the expanded programming spaces and amenities.
- The City Council's facilities committee considered various sites throughout Wahoo, including adding on to the existing Civic Center site. The proposed location in west Wahoo offers the space best suited to accommodate the proposed facility and potential future expansion.
- The new location is close to Hackberry Park and would complement existing recreational activities in the area.
- Future improvements to 10th Street will create safe multi-modal accessibility to the new recreation center. Funding for these improvements are already being planned for.
The preliminary cost estimate for the new recreation center is $27.4 million.
- The proposed recreation center would primarily be funded through general obligation bonds, repaid through a combination of voter-approved sales and property taxes.
- Pending approval of the proposed 1/2 sales tax extension this fall and a future general obligation funds referendum in spring 2027, the City would submit a Sport Arena Facility Financing Assistance Act application to the State of Nebraska for additional funding.
- Land has been donated for the proposed recreation center, eliminating land acquisition costs for the project.
- Private donations, sponsorships, and naming rights will also be solicited to assist with some of the costs associated with the facility.
What will happen to the current Civic Center once the new Community Recreation Center is completed?
- The gym, lobby, and meeting spaces of the current Civic Center would remain. Future plans include constructing a new building to house the Senior Center, Thrift Store, City Hall, and Chamber and Economic Development as part of the "Building Wahoo's Future" initiative.
Full fact sheet can be found here. Learn more about the proposed 1/2-cent sales tax extension here.
Preliminary designs of the facility.
