This morning at 11:00 AM, Ogden City held a groundbreaking and ribbon cutting ceremony to begin construction on the High Adventure Recreation Center, which when completed, will be a 125,212 square foot mixed use facility located on the northwest corner of 23rd Street and Kiesel Avenue.  “The groundbreaking for the Recreation Center is also setting the stage for tens of millions of dollars worth of private development coming to the heart of Ogden.   Retail, office, residential, entertainment, and cultural opportunities are flowing into downtown offering more for our citizens and increasing our tax base," said Ogden City Council Chair Rick Safsten.

The center will be comprised of traditional and unique non-traditional recreational activities unlike any facility in the nation.  The High Adventure Recreation Center plays a critical role in Ogden’s plans to revitalize downtown Ogden.  With the Recreation Center, the Children’s Treehouse Museum, Larry Miller Cinemas, and The Earnshaw Building, a six-story building that will be constructed directly north of the recreation center and will house retail uses on the first level, with condominiums and parking on the remaining five levels.  The old mall site will be transformed into an energetic and popular place for residents and visitors.  “This building is a key part in not just the mall project, but also in bringing more ski and recreation companies to Ogden.  The uniqueness of this High Adventure Recreation Center has been a great draw,� said Mayor Matthew Godfrey.

 

Larry H. Miller, well-known owner of the Utah Jazz, spoke at the groundbreaking event to announce and unveil his exciting plans and participation in the mall project area. The High Adventure Recreation center will be built by R & O Construction an Ogden business.  For several months now, David Freston, Director of Business Development, and Chris Anthony, Senior Estimator at R&O Construction, have worked side by side with the city, franchise owners and EDA Architects in anticipation of this exciting project. By using this “team� approach to the project, the owners and users are assured that they will get a high adventure complex with all the features they want, of high quality and timely construction, within a budget they can afford.  “Of course constructing projects in the city that has contributed to our success as a business is very meaningful to us; but constructing a project in our own town that is the springboard for a lively new downtown city center means even more,� says R&O Construction Owner Orluff Opheikens. The first floor will house the non-traditional facilities including FatCats Fun Center with an arcade, 34 lane bowling alley, billiard room, glow in the dark golf, bumper cars, kids zone play land, sports shop and lounge, and two restaurants, Costa Vida, Strikers, and The Pizza Factory which includes outdoor dining.  Also located on the first floor is Skyventure Utah, a vertical wind tunnel and skydiving free fall, and a Flowrider Surf Pool , and a 72 foot indoor boulder and rope climbing wall, the largest in Utah.  FatCats is a cutting-edge, state-of-the-art entertainment center for people of all ages.  This Utah company is owned and operated by its two original founders, Sean Collins and Dave Rutter.  FatCats uses the latest technology in sound and video to provide an unequalled experience for all who visit, and creates an environment which captivates and engages people.  With fantastic food and entertainment, everyone will find FatCats to be a favorite.  “Dave Rutter and I are excited to join with Gold’s Gym in making Ogden the home of our newest FatCats.  We are confident that with the bowling, billiards, kid zone, arcade, bumper cars, glow golf, together with the Costa Vida and Pizza Factory restaurants, we are confident all will enjoy an ALL OUT FUN experience,� stated owner Sean Collins. The second floor will house Gold’s Gym with a multipurpose health and fitness center, indoor track, basketball, racquetball, swimming pool, whirlpool, steam room and sauna, complete cardio workout center and personal training.  An indoor running track, physical and massage therapy, and The Dance Establishment dance studio will be located on the Mezzanine.  Gary and Peggi Nielsen, owners of Gold’s Gym, started in the health club business in 1993 when they purchased the Deseret Gymnasium at 25th and Jefferson from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. They acquired the franchise rights for Gold’s Gym in 1999 when they added the Roy location. In 2001 the 12th Street Ogden Gold’s Gym and the Layton Gold’s Gym were purchased. We now have over 15,000 members in northern Utah and memberships are valid at all our locations. We are very excited to be part of the reawakening of downtown Ogden. We are grateful for Mayor Godfrey and his economic staff for their vision of the total project in the downtown area. We hope this recreation center will become a model for other cities and counties. The city will receive millions of dollars of tax revenue from this building and surrounding developments over the next twenty years unlike city and county owned recreation facilities, whose operations are subsidized year after year by tax- payers. Peggi Nielsen will continue to operate The Dance Establishment, which has been in operation for 26 years in Plain City and Ogden with studios teaching tap, ballet, and jazz.

            Megaplex Mayor Godfrey Groundbreaking Ceremony Ribbon Cutting   Â