“Shovel Party” to Celebrate Ground Breaking for Destination O’Fallon in the O’Fallon Family Sports Park – March 21, 2017
O’Fallon, Illinois – Mayor Gary L. Graham is pleased to announce that the City of O'Fallon will be holding a “Shovel Party” at the O’Fallon Family Sports Park on Tuesday, March 21, 2017 at 5:30 p.m.to celebrate the ground breaking of the new multi-sport complex as part of Destination O’Fallon.
"One of the main projects of Destination O’Fallon is the multi-sport complex in the Family Sports Park that will become a magnet for soccer and other youth sports programs and will provide an added boost to the local economy,” said Mayor Graham. "The complex will include all-weather fields that will attract regional and national tournaments. Tournaments held at the O’Fallon Family Sports Park currently generate $5.1 million in economic impact to the City of O’Fallon. Once the fields are completed, it is estimated that the economic impact will be over $10 million annually.”
Construction on the multi-sport complex at the Family Sports Park will begin on Tuesday, March 21, 2017 and should be completed, weather permitting, by September 5, 2017. Construction will result in seven additional all-weather turf soccer fields, support facilities, accessibility improvements, and additional parking.
“Teams from around the region are already excited to come to O’Fallon for the new multi-sport complex,” said Donny Sheehan, O’Fallon KiXX Director of Coaching. “The first KiXX Soccer Tournament on the new fields is already scheduled for September 15-17, 2017, and we are expecting over 100 teams.”
Destination O’Fallon will make the O’Fallon community a national destination for families, businesses and visitors. An increase in the number of visitors and businesses will provide a boost to the O’Fallon economy. O’Fallon will become an even more desirable community in which to live, which in turn will help increase O’Fallon homeowners’ property values.
Destination O’Fallon, which also includes a new multi-purpose Downtown Plaza event center, and targeted economic development recruitment strategies, is funded using a 4% increase in the O’Fallon Hotel/Motel Tax so that out of town visitors, not O’Fallon residents, will pay for the community investments. O’Fallon families and homeowners will experience the benefits of additional amenities and increased home values, without having to pay for it through increased sales or property taxes.
