Game on

This story was featured in the December 2022 edition of Sandusky Living magazine. If you're interested in purchasing a copy, call the Register at 419-502-2130 while supplies last. SANDUSKY — When comparing youth sporting venues, one area complex finds itself sitting atop the standings. Just take a look at its jam-packed trophy case filled with many awards, titles and other achievements. Since opening in 2020, a diversified roster of different "teams" — like industry experts, area league officials, collegiate commissioners and even local residents — consider the Cedar Point Sports Center a championship-caliber facility. The feedback resulted in those aforementioned accolades. Several reasons exist for the high praise. To best understand the sports center's influence and impact, flip through its playbook, which offers a four-quarter glimpse into its game plan for success: 1st quarter — the layout Upon stepping foot into the 145,000-square-foot facility on Cleveland Road, (U.S. 6) in Sandusky, people instantly get swept away in a big-league vibe of what's to come. Most notably, it features: • Hardwood floors capable of converting into nine high school regulation-sized basketball courts or 18 high school regulation-sized volleyball courts; The space can also cater to those competing in wrestling, indoor soccer, gymnastics, dancing, cheerleading and pickleball. • A championship arena with retractable seating and bleachers for fans to watch marquee matchups • A Family Entertainment Center featuring climbing walls and ninja warrior course • A one-eighth-mile-long indoor walking track • A grand lobby, or mezzanine, with space available to rent out for community events, birthday parties or other functions • A concessions area with food and drinks "We truly believe our facility is the premier facility in the Midwest," said Justin Kijowski, the sports center's general manager. "The building aesthetics are tremendous. From the glass front, the digital boards, the professional-level hardwood courts and more, all present themselves as elite-level elements of an elite facility." Cedar Point owns the center's land. Sports Facilities Co., working in conjunction with Cedar Point, runs the entire indoor complex. Hence the name Cedar Point preceding the sports center title. "They are an amazing partner," said Jake Schwerer, the sports center's marketing manager, when speaking about Cedar Point. "To have a partner like Cedar Point provides a lot of brand equity," Schwerer said. "They have built up a history of providing amazing family experiences, from an amusement park and live entertainment standpoint, and that's what we are providing as well: an amazing family experience through our programming, whether it's basketball, volleyball, our ninja course or anything else we offer." Sports Facilities Co. and its affiliated company, Sports Facilities Advisory, oversee a portfolio exceeding $6 billion in sports and entertainment centers. The firm manages about 30 venues across the U.S., including in Chicago and Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Though there's something special about the arena in Sandusky, the company contends. And it starts with providing a clean, safe space for all guests, including athletes when they partake in their selected activities. Some of the best reviews the local facility receives revolve around this space's overall cleanliness. "Our spaces are always in pristine conditions," Schwerer said. "We pride ourselves on making sure the playing surfaces are clean, our restrooms are clean, our cafe is clean along with everything else. When people leave here, we want them to have the impression this is a clean, safe, fun facility." They also take great pride in offering "the highest level of guest service and want all of our visitors to feel at home," Kijowski said. Because of these features and factors, it's among the main reasons why, month after month, the sports center can attract thousands of youth athletes, be it locally or nationally, into Erie County for tournaments and other competitions. There's a goal to schedule events at the complex 52 weeks a year. Among two of the more notable events, the: • Great Lakes Crossover featured more than two-dozen Division III collegiate volleyball teams • Jingle Bell Jam, an event created by the sports center to bring high school basketball games to the venue; In total, 24 teams competed with eight of them as reigning district champions in their respective divisions. "There is no other facility in the area that is going to provide the amount and types of programming, to the size and scope, that we do," Schwerer said. "It's the perfect size in the perfect area: We are big enough to provide a high-energy atmosphere with lots of teams coming through but small enough that you feel like each team will be taken care of and have a great experience and not lost in the shuffle." 2nd quarter — the health aspect The sports center partnered with Sandusky-headquartered Firelands Health to build a physical, occupational, speech therapy and sports medicine services facility inside the sports center. It's known as the Lee C. Jewett Sports Medicine Center, named after Lee Jewett, a former Cedar Fair executive and Firelands Health board member. Jewett provided a $1 million donation toward the facility. Both athletes competing at the sports center and community members can receive treatment at this medicine center, which totals about 25,000 square feet in size. It also boasts multiple therapy pools. Dru Meredith, Firelands' vice president of operations, marketing and strategic planning, called the medicine center "the crown jewel of our therapy program." Firelands, which operates the medicine center, relocated a portion of its therapy programs and athletic trainers across the area to this site. It fulfills the sports center's mission of keeping people, especially kids, in great shape, Schwerer said. "Our goal is to improve the health of the community through the programs that we offer," Schwerer said. "Like with Cedar Point, we have another great local partner in Firelands to help impact the community's health, long term, by providing a space for athletes to get into shape and help them rehab from sport-specific injuries." 3rd quarter — the financial facet While the facility represents an estimated $42 million investment, not a single cent came directly from local taxpayers, officials said. Though those calling Erie County home do reap many benefits. How the finances break down: • $23 million: funds coming from Erie County through bed tax money, a fee assessed onto people, mostly tourists, whenever they stay in area hotels, motels, lodges, Airbnb or VRBO properties, bed and breakfasts and the like • $11 million: funds coming from Firelands Health, which includes money from donors, like Jewett • $6 million: funds coming from Cedar Fair, which is assuming all operating risk and will cover any yearly operating losses • $2 million: funds coming from Sandusky through a tax-financing arrangement; This accounts for future property taxes from development occurring at this site. Additionally, because Cedar Point owns the land, executives should pay upward of $700,000 in property taxes each year. The money goes into an account helping fund The Landing. It's a planned waterfront park located behind the sports center. "We didn't create a local tax, and we didn't spend local tax dollars on this project," said Erie County commissioner Pat Shenigo, who was instrumental in establishing this complex on the legislative side. Before the project broke ground, Shenigo served as a leading voice to ensure the public would benefit from this indoor facility, both through tax dollars and actual usage. "It's exciting to see this project come together," Shenigo said. "This will prove to be a great asset for our community not only to draw more tourist income year-round but also what this has become: a community center for our children, schools and seniors." More people staying in local lodges, eating at regional restaurants and shopping at area businesses infuses extra tax money into budgets overseen by Erie County-based political subdivisions. "Our facility was designed to keep business alive in the shoulder seasons in Sandusky and Erie County," Kijowski said. "Our tournament seasonality truly does mesh perfectly with what this area needed." Local businesses "will certainly be busier November through May each year than they have been in the past because of our tournament schedule," Kijowski said. "With the capability to host 160 teams each weekend, we're proud of the economic impact we have been able to create in the area." Based on all the extra tax revenue generated by sports center-related traffic coming into Erie County, officials can spend this money on publicly funded operations residents want and need. This would include better roads, more police officers and firefighters, fewer condemned homes in neighborhoods and much more. "This facility, which is paid for by the tourists who visit our county, will help provide year-round activity," said Erie County commissioner Matt Old, who worked with Shenigo on creating the sports center. "More of our local businesses will be able to stay open in the winter. By extending the season, we will create more money for local governments to be able to provide services." 4th quarter — the community component One major question many local residents ask about the center: Can the community use it? Absolutely, executives and officials said. Beyond receiving services at the medical center, many opportunities exist for local teams to play there. For starters, elementary- and middle-school-aged children from area schools practice and compete at this facility. "We are a unique hybrid sports tourism facility," Kijowski said. "Not only do we host roughly 45 tournaments a year, but we offer local programming during the week as well. Our leagues, camps and clinics truly offer something for everyone in the community." Executives realized many local school teams practice late at night, an unideal time, typically, for students, families, teachers, coaches and administrators. So they worked out many partnerships — such as with Perkins Township's recreation department, Huron Schools and Sandusky St. Mary Central Catholic High School — lacking gym space for their after-school sports. "Gym space in the area is tight when you are looking at all the teams for both boys and girls, factoring in grade school, middle school and high school," Schwerer said. "There are a lot of kids and a lot of teams that need gym space in the area. They would still (be able to) play their games at their schools, but they would be able to practice here." And, this year, the center created new programming for home-schooled children to further extend its reach. At any time the center is open, local are invited inside to walk along the walking track, which spans above playing areas, partake in the Family Entertainment Center or rent out space for parties. "We do have a great deal of community use in our facility," Kijowski said. "Most venues like ours truly only focus on the sports tourism aspect, but we believe that we should impact the health of the local community directly as well." There are roughly 2,000 youth athletes enrolled in the sports center's local programming each year. While primarily an athletics-first facility, it also hosts many other types of functions, namely the now-annual Best of the Bay. While primarily a sports center, this facility also hosts other types of functions, like the now-annual Best of The Bay. This entails bringing in local food and drink vendors and letting people sample these dining options while supporting small businesses. Additionally, in 2022, it hosted a Greater Sandusky Partnership summit, which brought in several panelists focused on area population growth. "Our goal is to impact the health of the community long-term," Kijowski said. "We look forward to seeing our athletes who participate in our youth programs excel for years to come."