PULASKI COUNTY, Va. – Pulaski County will have its very own sportsplex by the end of summer 2026, and a sneak peek reveals what will be inside.
A 15-year dream is coming to fruition as leaders announce plans to bring a sports center to the county.
“Where you are standing right now is on a basketball court, so this will be basketball court number six and/or volleyball court number six,” said Shay Dunnigan, parks and recreation director.
I toured the 165,000-square-foot facility with Dunnigan, who explained the sportsplex is located in the heart of the county and will offer something for everyone who visits.
“Kind of right here where you’re standing, if we go this way, you’re actually standing on the walking track,” Dunnigan said. “If you look all the way down through here, this will be three basketball courts—court one, two, three—and also it will be volleyball and futsal.”
He added the same layout will be mirrored on the other side, with three more courts extending down the facility.
“Our two turf fields will be back here,” Dunnigan noted. “That’ll be permanent pickleball courts out there. We’ll have overlap on all of our basketball and volleyball courts with 26 total pickleball courts in this place.”
County Administrator Jonathan Sweet said the $10,000,000 project, funded through a county smokers’ tax, is part of their plan to grow and attract people to the area.
“Our citizens, of course, are going to be enjoying it, but we are going to be able to enterprise and commercialize this as well, and that is what is going to make it affordable and sustainable,” Sweet said.
Tim Miller, sports tourism and entertainment director, emphasized the potential impact of the facility.
“This is the kind of thing that can truly transform a community, bring people in, support businesses, support jobs,” Miller said.
Once the facility is open, it will host tournaments, daily activities, and areas for local sports teams to practice and play.
They said the clock is now ticking to get this open and ready for the public by the end of summer 2026.
“This project has been a dream of our community for so very long and it was absolutely amazing to share with our citizens the details of how we plan to convert this discontinued manufacturing facility the County owns into one of the most meaningful assets a local government can provide its citizenry. As you can clearly see from the plans, the Sportsplex will offer something for everyone of all ages and the enterprising approach will not only make it affordable and sustainable for our citizens, but will fuel direct and indirect revenues by way of our hospitality and services industry sectors.”
Laura Walters, Chair, Board of Supervisors
The sportsplex plans to have the following amenities:
- 8 indoor basketball/volleyball/futsal courts
- 2 indoor turf soccer fields
- 4 permanent indoor pickleball courts, 22 additional indoor pickleball courts (total 26)
- community weight room
- cardio room
- senior room
- 1/5th of a mile indoor walking track
- 110 meter indoor sprint track
- 2 drop-down batting cages
- indoor Golf Institute
- full-service restaurant
- programming and classroom space
- member locker rooms
- exposition space
- entertainment space