Dixon Park District community center opening Aug. 19

DIXON – The Dixon Park District community center will be opening its doors on Aug. 19.

The building at 1312 Washington Ave. in Meadows Park will house two basketball courts with two automated volleyball nets and two batting cages, as well as a community room with a gaming system, an outdoor patio, and the district administrative offices.

A grand opening will take place at 3 p.m. Aug. 19 with a ceremony, tours of the facility and light refreshments. Details on admission, hours, programs and other information will be released in the next couple weeks, according to a district news release.

The Park Board approved constructing the $2.9 million building next to Water Wonderland about a year ago.

The district issued $2 million in general obligation bonds to help fund a “Phase 1″ facility to meet basic community needs that can be expanded in future years. The district wanted to build the project without asking voters to approve a tax increase.

Different community organizations have tried to build a community center, sports complex or recreation center in Dixon for many years, but failed to lock-in tax increases to do so. The Park District had planned on pursuing a referendum to expand taxing boundaries to mirror School District boundaries and increase annual revenue by around $1 million but decided to hold off because of the COVID-19 pandemic and strains on community members.

The Dixon City Council previously approved donating $700,000 for the project, and the district landed a low-interest loan from Sauk Valley Bank. Another partner is Trinity Financial, which purchased the naming rights to the Trinity Financial Community Room.