RICHMOND—“There was an intense meeting last Tuesday, I’ll put it that way,” Richmond’s top parks official told Parks & Recreation staff and board members at this month's regularly scheduled department meeting. They were discussing the  delays to the opening of the sports complex still under construction on Goggins Lane.

Parks superintendent Tim Gross said that his team has since implemented weekly video conference meetings with all the contractors on the project to track progress and prioritize construction locations. 

“You go out there today, there’ll be 57 people out there or more and a little bit of everything’s getting done,” Gross said. He added that despite multiple setbacks, the $52 million Richmond Regional Sports Complex is still expected to open in October. 

Portions of the complex were supposed to be open to the public by June of this year, but construction was delayed. When questioned by Parks Board co-chair Dan McBride whether the park would face another delay, Gross said that they were on schedule and that concrete work, electrical wiring and services, grading, seeding, and painting were currently under way.

When completed, the sports complex will feature eleven soccer fields, five of which will be for multi-use, as well as pickleball, tennis, volleyball, and basketball courts, multiuse and mountain bike trails, a disc golf course, a dog park, a playground, and picnic shelters.

“We’ve been assured—and the city manager even told me before I came [to this meeting] today—to make sure we emphasize that it’ll be completed in October with a ribbon cutting in November,” Gross told The Edge following the meeting. He added that the exteriors of the 23 structures in the sports park have been completed and turf for all five multi-use fields have been laid.

In her report to the Board, Parks Director Erin Sharp said the department has spent approximately 80% of its $3.7 million budget for this fiscal year. These expenditures include $442,840.68 spent on the Paradise Cove Aquatic Center for repairs, including pump replacements and repairs to a surge tank. The complete budget is available online. The report for fiscal year 2025-2026 will likely be completed in February, Sharp told The Edge following the meeting.

Paradise Cove is no longer open during the week, but is still open on Saturdays from 11 am to 7 pm, and on Sundays from 1 pm to 6 pm, according to Sharp. The pool will be open on Labor Day from 11 am to 7 pm and will close for the season afterwards.  

This year’s Fourth of July fireworks show at Lake Reba was marred by technical difficulties, according to Sharp. The person who was supposed to run the fireworks show was not on site due to a medical emergency, so an experienced apprentice took his place instead, Sharp told The Edge after the meeting. But, when the apprentice ran into technical difficulties, his solution was to hand-light each rocket, causing long pauses between the fireworks. 

The interior renovations at the Irvinton House Museum have now been completed, according to Sharp, who said Parks is awaiting the City’s approval for exterior renovations to the museum so that the house will be fully renovated before the Millstone Festival in October. 

The next free movie night will be Disney Pixar’s Hoppers, to be shown at Irvine-McDowell Park on August 21 at dusk.