Officials break ground on Lincoln’s new youth sports complex

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – A number of organizations gathered Tuesday morning to break ground on the Sandhills Global Youth Complex.

For decades, the land functioned as the city dump, but since the 1950s, it’s been largely unused.

The property, near First Street and Cornhusker Highway, will be turned into new baseball and softball fields for youth in the community.

It will also be home to Nebraska Wesleyan University’s baseball and softball programs.

At the ceremony, Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird said local government came up with about $12.5 million for the project. Around $4.5 million of that came from American Rescue Plan Act funds.

The total cost of the complex will be about $27 million, and the project is being funded by both public and private money.

“At the end of the day we all go to bat for a team we love, and that’s team Lincoln,” Gaylor Baird said.

SEE ALSO: Sandhills Global gifts $4 million to Lincoln Youth Complex

Sampson Construction, which is overseeing the project, said it will begin work this fall.

Most of the facilities will be built during 2024, and the complex should be completed by 2025.