What will be the size of the new Wagner Community Center?
The new Wagner Community Center will be 127,250 square feet (current Wagner Community Center is 32,000 square feet).
What will be included in a new Wagner Community Center?
The facility will include an indoor walking/jogging track, courts/gymnasium space for pickleball, basketball, volleyball and other sports, and a multi-sport artificial turf field. It also includes larger gymnastics and dance spaces, expanded and dedicated early childhood programming spaces, an indoor play area, and larger multi-purpose rooms to reduce program waitlists and for community meetings.
How large is the indoor turf space?
The new Wagner Community Center indoor turf space will be 60 yards by 40 yards, which is the size of a U9 level soccer field. The turf space will be 24,700 square feet.
What is the length of the free multi-lane walking/jogging track?
The new Wagner Community Center free indoor track will be a little less than 1/8 of a mile, which is approximately 8.6 laps per mile.
How large is the gymnasium?
The new Wagner Community Center gymnasium will be 27,285 square feet.
Where will classes be held during construction?
Classes will continue to be offered while a new Wagner Community Center is built. The Park District anticipates moving out of the existing Wagner Community Center in Fall of 2025. At that time, the Park District will use its own facilities, as well as pursue other options within the community for temporary programming space. The anticipated return to the new Wagner Community Center is Fall 2027.
Why build a new Wagner Community Center rather than renovate or expand the current facility?
Renovation and expansion of the existing Wagner Community Center was considered, but not feasible because of the current facility conditions and constraints. Dewberry, an architecture firm, considered the physical factors of the facility and potential costs and returns to determine its recommendation on whether to renovate/expand or build a new facility.
Dewberry recommended replacing the facility based on, but not limited to the following facility deficiencies:
- Exterior wall assembly - has little to no insulation and no water infiltration protections
- Exterior doors and windows - do not meet energy code performance and replacement would be required
- Roof Assembly - would need to be replaced to meet energy codes
- Structure - ceiling heights significantly restricted by vertical height of structure and functionality is hindered
- Accessibility - many areas remain non-compliant with today’s requirements
- Mechanical systems - designed to support an elementary school building, are aged, and have limited controls
- Security - no means to separate and secure the preschool area from other public spaces
- Electrical system - new electrical service would be required to support any addition
However, more importantly, the issue of renovation/expansion rather than a new facility is square footage. The community has told us it needs much more indoor programming space..
When was the current Wagner Community Center built?
The Wagner Community Center is nearly 70 years old and was designed to be an elementary school. The District purchased the building and adjacent properties totaling seven acres from MacCormac College in 2003 for $3 million. The District renovated the building, including adding a gymnastics facility in January 2004.
