The Big Reveal: Plans for Pulaski County Sportsplex made public

Sportsplex Lobby

Everyone who came to the big Reveal was offered donuts and time to socialize before opening the doors to the cavernous interior of the Sportsplex. (William Paine Photos/Patriot Publishing)

Proposed Sportsplex Entrance Lobby

This shows how architects envision the Sportsplex lobby once renovations are completed.

By WILLIAM PAINE

Patriot Publishing

Plans for the new Pulaski County Sportsplex were made public in grand fashion last week, with local leaders and many members of the public attending last Saturday morning’s big reveal ceremony at the building which formerly housed the Korona Candle factory on Pepperell Way in the Pulaski County Industrial Park.

Those who came to the reveal were offered free donuts upon entry into the building’s lobby. At about 10:30 that morning, attendees were ushered into the cavernous interior of the 165,000 square foot structure.  Once inside, guests were invited to take their seats in front of a stage which was set up for the occasion.

After showing a short video, Pulaski County Administrator Jonathan Sweet came onstage and declared that the Sportsplex was officially the “Future of Sports and Entertainment in Pulaski County.”

“This Sportsplex will have 26 pickle ball courts,” Sweet exclaimed to a receptive audience. “We could hold all the ‘Sweet 16’ basketball games simultaneously in this facility with eight basketball courts. Talk about ‘March Madness,’ right? The Sportsplex will have a 6,300 square foot playground. One of the largest in Virginia.”

According to information provided by the county, the Sportsplex could house eight indoor basketball or volleyball courts, 26 pickle ball courts and two futsal (indoor soccer) fields, but not at the same time. The flooring and gear required for each of those sports would be changed depending on the occasion.

Apart from the changeable sporting venues, the Sportsplex will include several permanent features including four pickle ball courts, two drop down batting cages, indoor golfing, a walking track, a community weightroom, a cardio room, a senior activity room, a restaurant, and space to house classrooms, lounges or entertainment.

“It’s about health and wellness and community,” Sweet declared. “There’s going to be robotics in this building. There’s going to be line dancing in this building. There’s going to be everything for everyone. If you don’t like sports, that’s okay. We’re going to do e-sports in this building … this is going to bring all those programs under one roof.”

Sweet then spoke about how the county was going to pay for the estimated $10 million needed to transform this vast empty space into “Virginia’s largest indoor versatile sports entertainment and exposition facility.”

“We’re going to pay for it with a novel approach,” said Sweet. “We’re going to pay for that debt service from the revenues generated by the sale of cigarettes.”

Before the big reveal, Sweet offered more specifics about financing of the Sportsplex.

After Korona Candle went out of business, county leaders decided to buy the property for $5 million, which the county kept in reserve.

“The company had been paying the county a lease for the property for many years and we basically just returned some of that money to maintain ownership of the building,” Sweet explained. “We basically bought out their lease-to-purchase option. They paid us more to lease it than we paid them back to keep the own-to-lease option.”

The county plans to finance the $10 million in needed renovations by selling county bonds on the open market. Money from the cigarette tax, which will net the county a half-million dollars annually, will be used to repay investors in 20 years’ time.

The tax, first levied in 2021, adds 40 cents to each pack of cigarettes sold in Pulaski County. Initially, all monies collected from the tax went to the school system’s Capital Improvement Fund, but in 2024 the school board resolved to forego $500,000 garnered from the cigarette tax back to the county for ten years. In exchange for this, county leaders agreed to extend the school system’s debt retirement service, which adds money to the school system’s Capital Improvement Fund by continuing to pay mortgages for county schools that have already fulfilled their debt obligations. Money from the debt service scheme will increase until it expires in 2039 and currently provides nearly $1 million annually to the Pulaski County Public School capital improvement fund.

“The Economic Development Authority sells bonds on the open market,” Sweet continued. “We basically pledge to pay back those who buy the bonds and it’s based upon our bond rating, which is currently is AA minus.”

The AA rating denotes expectations of very low default risk, meaning the county is considered highly likely to meet its financial obligations.

Sweet emphasized that there is no additional tax increase associated with the Sportsplex, nor are any monies being taken away from other county operations to finance the project.

“We’re still evaluating what is the best financing package,” said Sweet. “But before we do all this, we wanted to explain to the public what we’re doing. We don’t have every detail with respect to how we’re going to amortize the project. How much is tax exempt? How much is non-tax exempt? All of that is being worked simultaneously, but before we go any further, we want to showcase the Sportsplex to the community.”

After finishing his speech and turning the mic over to DJ Scotty Scott, an elementary school teacher who announces Pulaski Cougar football games, Sweet added a cryptic note before exiting the stage.

“You’re going to be dodging balls,” Sweet said with a smile. “Competitive dodgeball is a thing. So fair warning,” he told the crowd.

With that, it was left to Scotty Scott to introduce Pulaski County’s “All-Star” Team.

Scott began his call for “team members” with Pulaski County Chairwoman Laura Walters, who was said to be “head coach” for the Pulaski County Board of Supervisors. Walters came to the front of the stage holding a Pickle Ball racquet, as did all subsequent “team members,” who were called to the stage. When called, each supervisor trotted up to the stage to high five Walters before taking their place at the front.

The audience clapped and hollered as each county official took their place up front.

Other county All Stars included members of the Sports and Entertainment Authority Board, the Economic Development Authority Board, the School Board, County Administration, the Sports and Entertainment office, the Tourism office and Delegate Jason Ballard, all of whom came to the front of the stage high fiving other team members.

Then, after all had taken their places at front, Scott announced the Big Reveal. With that a Journey song began playing and all those called to the front began using their Pickle Ball racquets to launch spongy “stress” balls into the crowd.

A screen behind the stage announced that the Pulaski County Sportsplex would be open for business by the summer of 2026.

After the ceremony, attendees were invited to tour the interior and talk with county employees about what facilities will be available when work on the Sportsplex is completed.

County Supervisors and indeed everyone present for the occasion expressed optimism about the Sportsplex project.

“The one word to sum it up is awesome,” declared Ballard. “This truly is just an awesome place. So, whether young, whether old, whether active, inactive, trying to get back into something, sports, mobility, weight training, cardio. It has something for everyone.”

“It’s a huge step for the county, and it’s going to be such a blessing for our citizens to finally have somewhere we can work out all year long,” said Walters, of Ingles District.

“As a lifelong Pulaski County resident, I’ve heard for many, many years about the need for an indoor recreation facility similar to what other localities have,” said Cloyd Supervisor Chris Stafford. “So, I’m very grateful to be a part of this board that we’re bringing this facility to our citizens.”

“When me and Laura (Walters) joined the board this was one of the things that we really wanted to do and it’s good to see this coming to fruition,” said Draper Supervisor Dirk Compton. “Not only is this for our elderly, this is an opportunity for our kids to have a place to come and do something athletic instead of us worrying about them doing something they shouldn’t be doing.”

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to have a rec center that all our citizens will have access to,” said Robinson Supervisor Jeff Reeves.

“I just want to thank the citizens of the Massie District for trusting in me and electing me to represent them here in the county and I hope this is just a prime example of the good things to come,” said Supervisor Mike Mooney.

“It’s a community building first, but it’s something that is going to give us the opportunity to host competitions, tournaments, entertainment and concerts,” said Director of Sports and Entertainment Tim Miller.  “This community building is really going to have a dual purpose … That’s my main job, to bring events to the county and maximize utilization of all these facilities.”

“The Pulaski County School Board expresses its gratitude to county leadership for championing the Sportsplex project, which will serve as a valuable and much needed resource for our school aged community members,” said School Board Chairwoman Gina Paine. “We are confident that this initiative will significantly enhance Pulaski County’s reputation as an exceptional place to live, enjoy recreational activities and pursue education, with the Sportsplex playing a pivotal role in achieving these goals.”

“Pickleball is becoming the fastest growing sport in America, and I can see myself doing that,” said Sports and Entertainment Board member, Bud Foster. “I’ve got five grandchildren that live here in the New River Valley and they’ll enjoy that 6,300 square foot amusement area for the children.”

According to Sweet, the Pulaski County Sportsplex will be one of the largest facilities of its kind in the state of Virginia, but is $10 million enough to transform this structure into a premier sport destination?

“We’re only borrowing $10 million so I’ve got to make it work,” said Sweet. “But it’s like Randolph Park. Everybody loves Randolph Park, but it doesn’t make any money. We have to pay for that. What we’re doing, though, is we’re trying to use other people’s money, visitors’ money, to help us afford nice things. Eighty-percent of the nation’s communities have an indoor wellness center. We do not. How are we going to get one? This is it. This, is how we do it.”

Sportsplex Exterior Front

The entrance to the new Sportsplex served as the entrance to the Korona Candles before that company went out of business.

 Proposed Playground Layout

The Sportsplex playground is planned to cover 6,300 square feet and will likely be one of the largest in the state. In this layout, running tracks and basketball courts will line either side of the playground.