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Whitehall nearing completion of indoor athletic facility

Posted at 11:18 PM, Oct 01, 2019
and last updated 2019-10-01 23:18:40-04

WHITEHALL, Mich. -- The final phase of Whitehall's new indoor athletic facility is almost complete.

“It is a big asset to our community," Superintendent Jerry McDowell said. "Not only does it benefit our students but it benefits our parents and everyone else who has invested in the education and the well-being of our kids.”

Once students and faculty step foot in the building, they will enjoy a luxury that few do.

"I have seen a few nice facilities throughout the state of Michigan," McDowell added. "I do believe this will be one of the top facilities.”

As we get further into fall and the weather gets works, the ability to practice inside at all hours of the day, no matter the conditions outside, will be important to staying competitive in all sports.

“I think it is going to be an opportunity for a lot of our sports to get in here and use the running track for conditioning and get in here on the turf, soccer, football, having the two basketball courts, baseball, softball," baseball coach Warren Zweigle said.

What will be going into the facility and how much can be done inside is amazing in itself.

“We will have two full-sized (basketball) courts that can also be segmented off into four courts," Brad VanBergen, founder of Winberg Construction, said. "We are going to have a turf field that you will be able to do soccer, you will be able to do baseball practice, softball practice, football practice when it is raining after school that can come in here and do that.”

It's been a long process to get this facility up and running.  While there is still some work to do, the plan is to have students using the building later this fall.

“At this point, we are finishing it up," VanBergen said. "We are hoping to be done here in November. The floor is set, it is acclimated, they are installing it now. They should be done close to the end of the week or first part of next week.  We got the turf that goes on the other side, that will go on as soon as the wood floor is down.”