PHOTOS: Kalamazoo’s new $49M youth sports complex breaks ground
byMackenize Dekker|NewsChannel3
Fri, July 31, 2026 at 6:20 PM
10VIEW ALL PHOTOS
Kalamazoo’s new youth sports complex has officially broken ground! The project has been years in the making and dozens gathered on the plot of land that will one day house the Kalamazoo Indoor Sports Facility to celebrate the milestone. (Mackenize Dekker/WWMT)
KALAMAZOO, Mich. —Kalamazoo’s new youth sports complex has officially broken ground
The project has been years in the making, and dozens gathered on the plot of land that will one day house the Kalamazoo Indoor Sports Facility to celebrate the milestone
“It’s just so exciting,” Jane Ghosh, president and CEO of Discover Kalamazoo, said. “We’ve hosted national ice hockey tournaments, national figure skating tournaments, national curling. We host soccer, baseball. We have a great track record of hosting. Now we’re going to be able to do it for basketball and volleyball.”
The facility is a place where athletics, tourism, and economic growth intersect
The 135,000 square-foot complex will include right full-size basketball courts that can be converted to 24 pickleball courts and 16 volleyball courts
Kalamazoo’s new youth sports complex has officially broken ground! The project has been years in the making and multiple renderings showcased the final plans. (Mackenize Dekker/WWMT)
There is also an indoor turf field, team rooms, and a separate area for college recruiters
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“Our goal was we want no tournament turned away,” Ghosh said. “So, we asked for cheerleading: ‘what ceiling height do you need?’ For gymnastics, ‘what ceiling height do you need?’ We designed the airflow system so that we could host table tennis tournaments.”
The venue is a $49 million investment, but Ghosh said when it’s fully up and running, it’s projected to bring in $50 million a year
Kalamazoo’s new youth sports complex has officially broken ground! The project has been years in the making and multiple renderings showcased the final plans. (Mackenize Dekker/WWMT)
Tournaments will attract athletes and families from around the world who wouldn’t otherwise be in Kalamazoo – now booking local hotel rooms, shopping at local businesses, and dining in local restaurants
“Every time a restaurant closes I think, ‘what if we’d only been able to bring in one more event?’” Ghosh said. “And because these kids are going to come in with their families and they’re going to go to our restaurants, they’re going to go to our shops, we’re going to be able to help sustain and support our incredible locally owned and operated businesses.”
Of course, it’s also a huge opportunity for the athletes
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Corey Person, founder and CEO of United Pursuit Basketball Club and Pursuit of Excellence Foundation, has been part of this project since the beginning, offering feedback from an athlete’s perspective
Right now, Person said, because of limited court time, his club is maxed out at about 200 kids
But, this facility will change that. Allowing more kids to play more games at a more competitive level – right in their backyard
“Families don’t have the finances to be able to travel across the world, so to be able to go here and bring that here is going to be tremendous for our kids,” Person said. “For programs like ours who use basketball as a vehicle for mentorship, I also think that this facility is going to go far beyond just athletes and sports. I think it’s going to be tremendous for the community as far as After-School programming and giving the kids an outlet and a place to go.”
The facility is expected to be complete by the fall of 2027
