Winter weather has delayed plans to have the new Sterling Public Schools student rec center facility open in time for winter 2026 sports practices.

“We are currently a little bit behind schedule and that was due to some of our winter weather in December and most recently so that has put us a little bit behind,” Sterling Schools Superintendent Tad Everett said Wednesday after the Sterling School Board’s regular meeting.

The work that is underway near the current football field and stadium involves installing sewer, water and electrical lines for the new facility as well as moving and stabilizing ground for the building and the new parking lot.

Everett said the winter weather delay set back plans to have the new practice facility open in time for winter 2026 sports practices.

“Now we are planning for sometime in January 2027, January 1 is a target date (for opening). Our hope was to have it completed six weeks before that and then we would have it at the beginning of winter sports, which start in the middle of November. But unless there’s a miracle, we are not going to meet that deadline at this point in time,” Everett said.

While the majority of the actual building is expected to be done by the first part of 2027, the parking lot won’t be finished until later in the year.

“The building itself will be completed sometime by the end of this calendar year but we will not have parking available at the facility until probably around April 2027,” Everett said. Once building construction is completed and the district receives permission from the Regional Office of Education for student use, the facility will be open to students.

The new $11 million facility will have a half of a football field with artificial turf, three basketball courts, three batting cages and a pitching area for softball and baseball, a 4,500- square-foot weight room, and an indoor golf practice facility.

“As we put this facility together, we wanted to facilitate all of our teams. Baseball, softball, golf, all of our student athletes will be able to use the weight facility, the turf facilities,” Everett said.

One benefit of the new facility is that students will be able to practice earlier since there will be room for multiple sports to practice simultaneously.

“We have students practicing right now at 9 p.m. so this will allow our student athletes to be home sooner with their families, for dinner and homework,” Everett said.