New Lenox showcases new regional sports complex to public

The village of New Lenox held an open house for its new state-of-the art sports complex.

Wintrust Crossroads Sports Complex is a $70 million, 31-field complex at the crossroads of Interstates 355 and 80 next to Silver Cross Hospital, 45 minutes southwest of Chicago.

JLG Architects, in partnership with Sports Facilities Companies, Bolton & Menk, Spaceco, and Northern Builders, designed the complex.

At the June 28 and June 29 open house, the community enjoyed an array of free, family-friendly activities across all fields, including music, bounce houses, face-painters, contests, competitions and a wide variety of food.

New Lenox Mayor Tim Baldermann threw out the complex’s inaugural pitch, according to a news release from JLG Architects.

The 100-acre complex currently includes nine full-size baseball fields; 22 youth baseball and softball fields; two batting cages; and 11 multisport fields for soccer, lacrosse and football, according to the release.

The fenced-in, adjustable fields can accommodate all ages of athletes. The fields’ “extensive drainage system can filter up to 20 inches of rain per hour, allowing turf fields to be ready for play even minutes after heavy rainfall,” according to the release.

The complex also includes “a welcome center, two full-service concession stands, a Coors Light Chill Zone, a Pepsi Play area, a playground and 1,300 free parking spaces,” according to the release.

Baldermann previously said the village has a contract with a 147-room dual-brand hotel on the site.

“They’re working with their architect right now,” he said. “So they should be starting construction this summer.”

The project’s second phase will be a 140,000-square-foot fieldhouse for indoor sports: basketball, volleyball, pingpong, wrestling and pickleball.

The fieldhouse will include restaurants and a terrace “where people can look down on the courts,” Baldermann said.

“That’s probably two to three years out,” he said, adding that the village is waiting on revenue from commercial property.

The project has attracted a half-million dollars worth of sponsors – including the naming sponsor Wintrust – for terms that stretch from five to 10 years, Baldermann said.

Baldermann said Perfect Game USA is bringing “at least” 96 teams to the complex’s tournament over Fourth of July weekend. Tournaments are booked into next year, he said.

The Wintrust New Lenox Crossroads Sports Complex of New Lenox development is expected to have a $12 million economic impact in its first year, increasing to $20 million by its third year and then $34 million once the fieldhouse in completed.

For more information, visit newlenox.net.