A large multipurpose athletic facility, King Louie's Sports Complex, is soon to open at 600 N. English Station Road near Shelbyville Road in the Middletown area.

The 14-acre complex has been in the planning stages for three years and its first phase has been under construction for about a year, the operators said.

King Louie's will have both indoor and outdoor synthetic turf athletic fields for lacrosse, soccer and field hockey, a training facility focusing on youth sports, two sand volleyball courts, and a restaurant.  A news release said that the 24,000-square-foot, indoor portion of the complex plans a grand opening event on Oct. 1, with leagues starting in early November.

Mike Havill, general manager and King Louie's vice president of operations, said the air-conditioned facility is intended to be one of the best indoor facilities in Kentucky and will feature a 15,700-square-foot, synthetic-turf field, with glass dasher boards, an upstairs viewing area, a concession stand, a conference and party room and a gaming area.

King Louie's website will allow teams to view rosters, schedules and upcoming events and details on leagues at King Louie's.

"We strive to provide players with a fun, safe, and productive training environment and competitive leagues where players will learn the importance of teamwork, build confidence and have fun while practicing the fundamental, technical, and tactical skills of lacrosse, field hockey and soccer," Havill said in the release.

Scott Apostoli is King Louie's director of programming and former director of coaching for the Commonwealth Soccer Club in Lexington. He trained as a soccer coach with many of the top soccer clubs in Brazil and is a staff coach with the Kentucky Olympic Development Program, as well as the assistant women's soccer coach at Asbury University.

Havill and Apostoli said they are trying to reach out to "Louisville's school athletic directors, select soccer, lacrosse and field hockey directors to promote the programs that King Louie's plans to offer for their teams and leagues and to work with the directors to set up training programs for young athletes."

Matt Rumpke, owner of Blind Squirrel LLC, the parent company of King Louie's, said that the indoor facilities are just the start for King Louie’s Sports Complex. He has pending before the Middletown's city commission a request for approval of a planned 10,800-square-foot training facility, an outdoor synthetic turf field and a small youth grass field,

In addition, Rumpke said construction is expected to begin this winter on two outdoor volleyball courts that should open next spring.

Three outdoor fields are currently approved under the existing site plan, however, King Louie cannot build the outdoor fields until English Station Road expands to three lanes, probably in three to five years.

Rumpke said the indoor athletic field will be used primarily for soccer, lacrosse and field hockey and perhaps other sports.

"We have had discussion with people wanting to do indoor football and other training and fitness classes," he said, adding that "the facility has been rented for Fit4Mom classes in the winter and to the Kentucky Gymnastic Association, which plans to host a gymnastics event in February at our facility."

He said the complex doesn't plan to have membership or user fees. The site will have leagues for soccer, lacrosse and field hockey for all ages. Adult men's, women's and co-ed soccer leagues are planned on weekday nights and weekends.

The King Louie phone number is 502-638-2629, and the website, expected to be fully developed soon, is kinglouiesports.com.

 

courier-journal.com

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