Temple Terrace recreation complex undergoes major renovation

TEMPLE TERRACE — It appears that the renovation of Temple Terrace Family Recreation Complex was paying off before it was even finished.

Karl Langefeld, the city's Leisure Services director, said the center's revenue from new memberships increased by about $10,000 for the first six months of the fiscal year, which began last Oct. 1. He credits the opening of the new fitness center last fall with the rise in membership, and "I think also what people saw was coming.''

What was coming is here now, and city officials celebrated the $2.6 million job with a ribbon-cutting ceremony last week.

Aside from creating the dazzling, two-level fitness room — flooded with light from new windows — workers expanded the gymnastics room to make room for a regulation vault runway; completely renovated the locker rooms to enhance privacy; built two family restrooms; put in a new circular drive in the rear of the building to ease crowding at the front; installed a new playground and half-court for basketball out back; improved the kiddie pool area; and built a sheltered picnic area out back as a lunch area for summer camp kids.

But all that is the tip of the iceberg, as Langefeld said. The work you don't see is just as pleasing to him. All the electrical wiring in the building is new, as is all of the plumbing. The roof is new. And ramps, railing and other improvements were made to bring the building into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

"It's the things that make the building work. The lights are going to work, the toilets are going to flush, people who have mobility issues are going to be able to get around the building,'' he said.

Michael Wood, 69, of Temple Terrace, stopped in the recreation center recently to find out more about pickleball, a tennis-like sport that is especially popular among senior citizens. He said he was considering becoming a member of the recreation center, and he was impressed after checking out the rest of the place.

"I'm sure I'm going to join,'' he said.

"They've done a great job of updating it to make it, I'll say world-class,'' said Tracy Mishler, 66, a retired Temple Terrace police captain. He plays pickleball at the rec center once or twice a week.

What Langefeld said he considers "the biggest story about this renovation'' is the addition of a snack and coffee area run by the special needs students of Focus Academy. Langefeld invited the school to set up in a space off the front lobby, which the city is donating at no charge. The school buys its own products to sell and keeps all the money it makes.

"It's a great project for two reasons,'' Langefeld said. "One, it's a fundraiser for their school ... And secondly and more importantly, it's valuable work experience for their kids.''

Contact Philip Morgan at pmorgan@tampabay.com or (813) 226-3435.