By DEBORAH MARTINEZ MARTINEZ
A new facility in Pueblo promises to serve county residents at the Pueblo County Recreation Center, 1650 Cooper Place, previously called the St. Charles Mesa Recreation Center, according to Kevin Harris, Community Center Specialist.
The new center grand opening was on December, according to Amanda Hobson Deputy Director. The center is located on the old Boys Ranch, in Salt Creek, and is open to all Pueblo county residents.
At present, Harris said, there is no fee but that could change. “Right now, we serve about 1200 people monthly,” Harris added. “There are small fees for some programs.”
“A membership card just verifies that the person has signed a liability form,” Hobson added.
The McHarg Community Center serves Avondale and the Fulton Heights Community Center serves residents in the Salt Creek area. McHarg also has a Boys & Girls Club with bussing from Boone and Avondale.
“In 2016, county residents passed initiative 1A to get funding for the Recreation Center and eventual 17-acre park,” Hobson said. The land originally belonged to Pueblo County, then to the state. When the Boys & Girls Ranch exited, the County had first rights of purchase. The Recreation department purchased half of the property and Health Solutions bought the other half. The planning took from 2017 to 2019.
The county purchased the gym and land of the old Boys Ranch, and is still in the process of updating, renovating and adding, Kevin reported. At present, Harris is the only full-time employee with two part-timers. They keep the center operating seven days a week.
Several karate, yoga, basketball and volleyball activities are run by the staff, with pickle ball, Aikido and Indoor Youth Soccer available.
Hobson added, “Steel City Self Defense with experienced instructors are housed at the Center through a contract to offer services.”
Tai Chi classes operate on a partnership program with the Pueblo City-County Library District.
For questions, call Harris at 719-583-2970. He said he continues to work on programming for after-school kids. To reach the Rec Center, turn west on Roselawn then left on Cooper. Signage is one of the improvements they plan to make.
The Center is open Mon-Fri. 8 am to 9 pm, and on Saturday and Sunday 8 am to 6 pm.
