By Karen Kennedy and Robert Herrington
Construction is on schedule and under budget and residents should hear the crack of the bat and blown whistles next spring at Grand Park Sports Campus. Michelle Krcmery, Grand Park marketing manager, said the first baseball tournament will be held in April 2014.
“The interest has definitely picked up in recent weeks,” she said. “With lights going up, it’s literaly coming out of the ground. It’s not a pure construction side; it’s taking the shape of a park.”
Stadium lights have been installed and sod and synthetic fields also are underway.
“Grass is growing really well. The current weather is good but workers are hoping for hotter weather,” Krcmery said.
On Aug. 14, Carmel Chamber of Commerce members learned more details of Westfield’s sports development from Steve Henke and his son, Brad, of Henke Development Group, LLC, along with William Knox of the Hamilton County Sports Authority. Henke told the packed audience at the Bridgewater Club, 3535 E. 161st St., that Grand Park will spread across 400 acres in Westfield.
Westfield Mayor Andy Cook said one of the selling aspects of Grand Park is that unlike other major tournaments, all games will take place in one location.
“We think we’ll have 400,000 visitors in the first year of operation,” he said, adding that number should balloon to 1.5 million visitors annually. Cook said the five-year economic impact to the City of Westfield is projected to be $1.04 billion.
The Monon Trail will eventually run through the park, which also will have nine lakes, including one large lake which will be surrounded by a boardwalk and a 220-acre mixed-use facility called Grand Park Village, which is another Henke Development project.
“This will not just be a sports complex,” Steve Henke said. “It will be a destination park for all of Hamilton County. There will be opportunities for kayaking, paddle boating, miniature golf, and also a large, outdoor projection screen for movie nights.”
“We currently have five full-service restaurants committed, including a large Indianapolis chain. We also have an ice cream shop and a national pizza chain,” Brad Henke said. “We are in the final stages of negotiation with a national hotel group that wants to build two properties; one just outside the park, near U.S. 31 and Ind. 32, and one inside the park, each with approximately 120 rooms.”