Big headlines in the Dispatch this morning announce the start of construction on the huge sports complex out at Francisco Grande. When complete, the $20 million project will include a sports complex with eight football fields, four field houses, a 57,000-square-foot state-of-the-art building housing the sports training and rehabilitation center, locker rooms, office space and other recreational amenities for public and private use. An agreement between the city and Francisco Grande calls for Casa Grande to pay for construction of the complex -- expected to cover about 50 acres adjacent to the hotel -- while the resort will maintain the complex and handle marketing. The city will own the project but Francisco Grande will operate and maintain the facility including cleaning, watering, cutting the grass and staffing.Included in the complex:
1) Training for the Las Vegas and San Francisco United Football League teams
2) The Academy which will offer world-class instructional programs in soccer, tennis, football, golf, and physical and mental conditioning for children ages 7 to 18
3) National sports medicine rehabilitation center, Proaxis Therapy, which works with top athletes in various sports
4) Blue Entertainment Sports Television which will help provide national exposure for Casa Grande and the facility.
the UFL plans its season debut in October. On its web site, the UFL says it plans to train and house players in Casa Grande beginning in September and plans to begin signing players in July. UFL fans can follow updates on the organization's web site www.ufl-football.com or on Twitter, http://twitter.com/theufl as well as on Facebook and MySpace.
