Project Profile: KIDSPORTS Field House at Civic Park

Supporting local communities is a practice Timber Products values throughout the organization from our multiple plant locations to our corporate office location in Eugene, Oregon. On July 6th, the KIDSPORTS Field House at Civic Park in Eugene, Oregon opened its doors officially to the public.

Under construction since 2018, the Field House is a 40,000 square foot facility with four hardwood basketball courts or volleyball courts, two outdoor courts, with meeting and event spaces.

“The basketball courts are available to the KIDSPORTS community and the general community at large,”said Beverly Smith, Executive Director for KIDSPORTS.“We will deliver basketball, volleyball, pickle ball, indoor futsal, and other functional fitness activities for both children and adults as well as drop in times for community use.”

The materials used to create the basketball court flooring inside the field house was donated by Timber Products. About 55,000 board feet of hardwood maple lumber manufactured by Timber Products’ Munising, Michigan plant was used to construct the courts.

“It’s wonderful to see our company giving towards a community project like the KIDSPORTS court. The facility is a great use for people to get out and exercise,” said Jon Johnson, Munising Plant Manager for Timber Products.

The field housefloor was specified by Chambers Construction to have amarbled, rustic look with 60% white and 40% brown coloration. The different colors result from where thecut of wood originates from in the log.

“The closer to the heart of a log you get, the more color variation is present,” said Johnson.

Once the material was cut, Timber transported the raw lumber to Connor Sports, a company that specializes in making sports flooring systems.

“We were proud to once again partner with Timber Products,”said Conrad Stromberg, recently retired Senior Commodity Buyerat Connor Sportswho worked on the project. “Timber has been and continues to be a valued supplier for over 30years. We have a great working relationship.”

At Connor Sports’ manufacturing facility in Amasa, Michigan, the basketball flooring took its final shape. The raw wood wasmilled to the required specifications set by Chambers Construction. The floor for KIDSPORTS took about two days to produce and was then transported to site in Eugene, Oregonfor installment.

“For this particular project, it took about three weeks to place the floor down,” said Conrad Stromberg. “First, the subflooring is put down. It’s followed by nailing the strip flooring to the subfloor. Once that’s done, the floor is sanded twice, coats of sealant are applied and then they paint the game lines. Two coats of finish are put overtop and it’s left to dry.”

The resultant floor wasready to use for all types of sport activity. Not to mention, it looked great.

“It turned out phenomenal,” said Smith. “This is not just a “nice to have” amenity, but a much needed space and place for our community to gather, play, develop, and have fun.”

“It’s always fun for us to know where the logs we mill end up after going through our plant. We don’t always know where it’s going or will end up,” said Johnson. “This project turned out beautiful.”

The field house is a $30-million project that came together with KIDSPORTS and the Eugene Civic Alliance, a 501 c 3 non-profit planning and funding the new construction.

“The new facility provides a much needed space and place for kids, teens, adults, and seniors to visit to participate in physical activity that promotesa healthy lifestyle to enhance the physical, social, emotional and mental wellbeing of our community,” said Beverly Smith, Executive Director for KIDSPORTS. “A community that plays together stays together and is healthier doing so.”

To learn more about the KIDSPORTS Field House at Civic Park, visit: https://kidsports.org/