MONROE COUNTY, Ga. — Monroe County is having a groundbreaking for a new basketball gymnasium.
Their rec center is expanding because of a need for more gym space. The new space will have two courts.
Gerard Evans has been playing basketball at the old rec center since he was 5 years old.
“[The] gym is always super packed and it's hard for the kids to focus and it's pretty hard for us to teach and develop a kid when there's only two goals in one gym," Evans said.
He says it's always a packed gym and now the county needs more room for the kids.
“It'll be a new environment for them to learn and grow in, instead of the same old agenda we've been playing in for over 20 years,” Evans said.
Commissioner Lamarcus Davis says the community has had a long-standing need for facilities like this one .
“We are growing as a county, and we're growing as the rec department, more kids are signing up, and we're running out of gym space," he said. "When it's basketball season, we're having to squeeze our kids in gyms."
Davis says the new gymnasium will have more courts, a concession stand, meeting rooms and dressing rooms. He says the new rec center won't just be for the basketball fans.
“[The gym] will not only be served as a basketball gymnasium, but it will be converted into volleyball courts, pickleball courts," Davis said.
He says commissioners are aware that making older spaces new again is important for folks in the community.
“We are working hard for the community to make this a great place to continue striving to make this a great place to live,” Davis said.
Lamar Davis says the project is expected to be complete by March of 2025.
The groundbreaking is on Thursday, Sept. 26, at 10 a.m. in Forsyth.