Pickleball, basketball, and go karts? Upper Valley Mall could see big changes

Plans and designs for a possible development at the Upper Valley Mall were posted on Facebook.

Plans and designs for a possible development at the Upper Valley Mall were posted on Facebook.

A store in the Upper Valley Mall announced major developments at the Springfield shopping center, but officials warn nothing is set.

Home Plate Sports Academy posted a now-viral Facebook post saying they had spoken with new owners of the mall and a sports complex was coming to the shopping center that has seen numerous stores close or leave over the last several years.

“The mall will be a multi-purpose sports complex for soccer, baseball, pickleball, basketball, go karts, volleyball and competitions for various things,” the post says. “Launch trampoline center, movie theater, restaurants, hotels are all coming and much more!”

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The post says the redevelopment could start as soon as March and is estimated to take about two years to complete. It has nearly 1,000 reactions, 250 comments and more than 1,500 shares.

However, Clark County Commission Spokesman Michael Cooper cautioned nothing is official at the mall and the Clark County land bank is still the owner of much of the property.

“The Clark County Land Reutilization Corp. is still in negotiations about a possible redevelopment opportunity at the Upper Valley mall,” Cooper said in a statement. “We’ve been working hard on the details and hope to have an official announcement in the near future.”

Cooper declined further comment as negotiations are ongoing.

He previously said the county is “deep in negotiations with a developer to breathe new life into the Upper Valley Mall complex.”

The land bank purchased 40 acres of property at the Upper Valley Mall for about $3 million in 2017. The plans have been to spark redevelopment on the German Twp. site.

Home Plate Sports is an indoor sports business at the mall which has batting cages and personal instruction for hitting, catching and pitching, according to their Facebook page. There are also party rooms for birthdays, team parties and youth group gatherings.

READ: With Sears closing, what’s next for the Upper Valley Mall?

A message left Monday morning at the business has not been returned.

Their Facebook post includes three pictures that lay out what the new mall set up may look like. The designs show there will be four baseball/softball fields, six soccer pitches and a 62,400 square-foot field house that will surround the current mall.

Inside will also have basketball, pickleball and volleyball courts, a fitness center, a family fun center (trampoline park) a cinema, a daycare, a food court, co-work space and a banquet hall.

The business said it expects to play a major role in the new complex.

“The mall’s new owners had a meeting with us today and big changes are coming, and our indoor sports and strength training facility will be growing and we will be expanding our services and space,” the post says.

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