Reprinted with permission from The Republic newspaper, December 14, 2022
Construction crews have started pouring concrete for what will become the footing of an indoor sports fieldhouse that is being built on the NexusPark site in Columbus.
About 40 trucks on Tuesday poured a collective 360 cubic yards of concrete on the north side of the NexusPark site in what officials said was a milestone for the construction of the fieldhouse,which is expected to be completed by December 2023.
The 150,000-square-foot fieldhouse is part of the NexusPark project, a joint effort between the city of Columbus and Columbus Regional Health to transform the former FairOaks Mall into a health, wellness, and recreation center.
The fieldhouse will be “a sports and events venue that will host a multitude of different types of sporting and non-sporting events,” including local, regional, and state sports tournaments, as well as potentially hosting trade shows, conferences, graduations and large-scale community events, according to the project’s website.
“Today is a big day,” said Ken Maschino, superintendent at Taylor Brothers Construction, the construction manager working for the city on the project. “Getting that concrete in the ground is kind of a big milestone.”