Kennesaw to hold open house for new rec center

The City of Kennesaw and Kennesaw Parks & Recreation will hold an open house for the new recreation center at Adams Park, 2737 Watts Drive, on Saturday, January 22, 2022, beginning at 10 AM.

The press release describes the open house and the offerings at the rec center as follows:

The gyms will be open for basketball, volleyball and pickleball. Pickleball will have instructors on-site showing interested attendees how to play. There will be classes going on, snacks, giveaways, the walking track will be open and more! Giveaways will include mini basketballs and volleyballs, sunglasses and more!
Upon completion, the 42,000 square foot Recreation Center will feature three basketball courts, a walking track, two fitness rooms, a gymnastics center and office space. Programs offered at the Recreation Center will include basketball, volleyball, pickleball and more.

Background

The $10.4 million facility was built with a reallocation of funds from the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST).

According to a report by Rebecca Gaunt published in the Courier in December of 2020:

The project was originally planned for two phases, ground already having been broken for phase 1 in July and paid for with funds from the 2016 SPLOST. Phase 1 is approximately 21,500 square feet and will contain two multi-purpose gyms, a fitness area and offices.
Phase 2 will be 18,200 square feet and contain another multi-purpose gym, a dedicated gymnastics area and a walking track that will extend into phase 1.
The city was unable to move forward on the second part of the project until voters passed the 2022 SPLOST in the November election. Now that the funding is secured, City Manager Jeff Drobney informed the council that the city can save $470,000 in construction costs by completing the entire center in one go.

About the City of Kennesaw

The City of Kennesaw was incorporated in 1887. With a population of 33,036 according to the recent decennial census, Kennesaw is the third-largest city in Cobb County, behind Marietta and Smyrna.

The U.S. Census Bureau reports the follow facts about Kennesaw, from 2019 estimates (we will update this when the census bureau completes its presentation of the 2020 census):

2019 Population Estimates 34,077

Source: Vintage 2019 Population Estimates

Median Household Income $ 70,930

Source: 2015-2019 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

Persons in poverty, percent 10.0 %

Source: 2015-2019 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

Educational Attainment: Percent high school graduate or higher 91.8 %

Source: 2015-2019 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

Persons without health insurance, percent 12.4 %

Source: 2015-2019 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

Median Housing Value $ 194,800

Source: 2015-2019 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates