Soldotna’s new multi-purpose field house opened Saturday with an afternoon of activities that included games of pickleball, food trucks and information booths. The grand opening comes after a decade of planning, two municipal ballot propositions and widespread support from the community.
It was a sunny Saturday in Soldotna when city officials and chamber of commerce employees clustered around a cherry red ribbon they sniped with scissors. They were standing in front of a dense crowd gathered to celebrate the grand opening of the Soldotna Field House, which towers over them.
“It's been so long that we've been working on this and the community has been involved in getting this done,” said Soldotna Mayor Paul Whitney. “Finally, it's here, it's done, and it's because of all the enthusiasm and all the different groups and all the people that were involved in seeing this to a completion, that's great.”
The 54,000-square-foot field house has been a dream for many Soldotnans for decades. But the road to the ribbon cutting formally started about a decade ago. That’s when Jeff Dolifka signed on. He’s on the board of the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Kenai Peninsula, and spearheaded canvassing efforts to rally support when field house funding went before voters three years ago.
Standing on the lower level, he gestured to different areas of the facility.
“You can put the full length basketball court, and that has pickle ball, obviously, basketball, volleyball, but on a scale that we didn't have before,” he said. “So you could have multi-courts going, and then now you can insert to the turf, and that opens a whole other arena for the track, for the football, soccer, baseball, that we've never had those opportunities.”
It hasn’t always been a given Soldotna would be able to open the field house. When the city put the issue before residents six years ago, voters killed it by just 18 votes. But a similar proposition three years ago got overwhelming support.
Dolifka has a theory about why the second time was the charm.
“I think people just assumed it was going to pass,” he said. “And then it came up 18 votes short. So the second round, I think everybody really was highly motivated. And I mean, you had one of the highest voter turnouts for the second round and you just saw the level of passion.”
The 2022 ballot proposition gave the City of Soldotna permission to incur up to $15 million worth of debt to build the field house. And the city used federal COVID-19 relief dollars to finish up design work.
After the election, cost estimates shot up, and city council members considered scaling back the project scope to bring it back under budget. Actual project costs came in under budget, though, and the city tied up loose ends last summer.
On Saturday, the facility was a flurry of activity. People walking on the elevated track peered down at the lower level, while kids played with foam blocks and soccer balls on the artificial turf. The cement slab south end was dotted with booths advertising local activity groups, from archery to hockey.
One of the activity booths is manned by Ed Schmitt, who’s representing a local juggling club.
“Juggling is three things, three important steps: First you throw something in the air, then you drop it and then you laugh,” he said.
He says his club is at the grand opening to recruit new members and because they plan to offer classes at the field house.
But the city envisions the space accommodating state tournaments, annual meetings and freeing up space at the adjacent Soldotna Regional Sports Complex, too.
“This isn't a profit center, and never will be,” Whitney said. “Parks and Rec is there for quality of life. It's for the people, the community, and I’m just as happy as can be.”
Dolifka agrees.
“I really do believe it changes lives, you know?” he said. “Providing opportunities – I just see the value in that. And so any opportunity that we can to give kids, you know, for the future, more opportunities, I'm gonna be there.”
Soldotna City Council members in April set facility use fees. Day passes run adults $5 per visit, or $100 for three months. Discounts are available for children, veterans, seniors and active duty military members.
The field house will open for regular operations Sept. 2. In the meantime, it’s closed to accommodate two large community events and a final floor reset. More information about the Soldotna Field House, including flooring schedules, the booking policy and user fees is available on the city’s website.
