Fishers’ new recreation and community center has evolved.
The $60 million project under construction in 121st Street and Hoosier Road was intended to fill a gap for a public, affordable and modern sports facility.
It will stay that way, with a large gymnasium, an indoor running track, a fitness center, a training studio, a swimming pool and a 490 m² playground.
But the “community” component of the city’s construction project will attract far more attention than originally envisaged.
Now called the Fishers Community Center, the building will become the new headquarters of the Fishers Health Department, house a nonprofit adult day care facility, and provide recreational facilities for the disabled and their families.
“We really pride ourselves on accessibility,” said Jake Reardon-McSoley, Fishers’ director of recreation and wellness, adding that Fishers’ Disability Advisory Committee insisted on some adjustments.
For wheelchair users and small children, there will be a shallow warm water pool with ramps for entry, and water chairs and a mechanical lift will be available, Reardon-McSoley said.
Other pool entrances have railings and steps for people with less severe mobility impairments who use walkers, crutches or canes. Some of the exercise equipment is also wheelchair accessible and the centre offers an adult changing area with adjustable baby changing tables.
The center also offers childcare for young children for up to two hours while parents train.
Outside the Box, an adult day care facility, will relocate its Fishers location to the new center. The nonprofit organizes activities for people with developmental disabilities such as Down syndrome and autism.
The organization was founded in Indianapolis in 2008 and is still headquartered at the corner of 56th Street and Binford Boulevard. Last year, a temporary Fishers location opened at 96th Street and Hague Road to meet a need in Hamilton County, said executive director Michelle Miller.
“We wanted to expand and the new Hamilton Southeastern Schools had good programs and saw this as an opportunity to continue them,” Miller said.
The community center will accommodate approximately 160 adults per week who will participate in a wide range of daily activities including art, cooking and trips to museums and parks, as well as sports at the center.
Miller said she hopes to eventually incorporate job training and job search assistance into the program, like Outside the Box does in Indianapolis.
The Fishers Health Department will move its headquarters, including offices and treatment rooms, to the center. The department, which was created in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic, had previously operated out of the Fishers Fire Department station in the community center.
Reardon-McSoley said the center will offer discounted day or monthly passes for Fishers residents, but some amenities will be free to everyone, including the playground, the running track above and around the gymnasium and admission to a Sahm’s Café.
The price of the passes has not yet been determined, but they provide access to the gym, pools, water slide, childcare and exercise rooms.
The opening of the community center is planned for fall 2025.
Call IndyStar reporter John Tuohy at 317-444-6418. Email [email protected] and follow on X/Þjórsárdalur and Facebook.
