Construction has begun on a major expansion project at the Round Rock Sports Center. The new expansion project was approved by voters in a $274 million bond package last year. The project is expected to be completed by early 2026.
ROUND ROCK, Texas – Construction has begun on a major expansion project at the Round Rock Sports Center. That could create room for thousands more people to participate in sports in Round Rock every weekend.
“Round Rock is known as the sports capital of Texas, and we take that very seriously,” said Chad McKenzie, Round Rock’s director of sports management and tourism.
They want to dig a little deeper into that nickname.
“Anything that you can think of that allows you to perform activities on a hardwood sports court surface, we’re ready to rock and roll,” said Brian Stillman, Round Rock’s manager of sports facilities and operations.
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At the Round Rock Sports Center on Thursday, construction crews dug into what will eventually become the cornerstone of a new expansion project approved by voters in last year’s $274 million bond package.
“We’re in the early stages, so we still have a little over a year of construction left,” McKenzie said. “They’ve accomplished a lot in the first month, but there’s still a lot to do.”
Construction began in early September. When completed, the layout will be slightly larger than two basketball courts and space for bleachers.
“There’s a huge hole in the ground, and basically what you see there, we’re currently pouring concrete piers, and that’s going to be the foundation for the flooring that’s going to go in there,” Stillman said. spoke.
These two new shiny basketball courts can also be used as four volleyball courts. In addition, the city is adding an additional 400 parking spaces.
“That’s one of them, we just don’t seem to have enough parking for these types of events and activities,” Stillman said.
For Mackenzie, the reason behind it all boils down to one word.
“The demand is there,” McKenzie said. “We have a lot of local kids and local people around Austin, especially kids from Round Rock, which is home for them.”
Approximately 4,000 to 6,000 people flock to the sports center every weekend.
He also said if the city wants to maintain its title as the “Sports Capital of Texas,” it can’t do that without more space.
“Since we opened the existing Square Center over 10 years ago, we’ve honestly been over capacity,” Stillman said. “We have far more demand for court space and court time than we have available.”
Construction will disrupt tournaments on several occasions during this expansion period.
The project is expected to be completed by early 2026.
Facility managers hope to try another bond for six additional courts.
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Information for this report was obtained from an interview conducted by FOX 7 Austin reporter Lauren Rangel.
