Sports center to rise at dome site
$1.5 million complex also will host conventions, trade shows
PLYMOUTH -- A new athletic complex and convention center is going to replace the old Plymouth Sports Dome, a once-bustling regional sports facility that collapsed during the blizzard in 2005.
Plymouth Adventure Park LLC , which last week purchased the site of the ill-fated dome, will officially unveil plans tomorrow for a 67,000-square-foot facility to be called the JunglePlex.
It will feature three turf fields for indoor soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, and other sports, according to Kosta Haveles, partner and marketing director for Plymouth Adventure Park, who agreed to provide a preview of the new facility.
The company expects the JunglePlex to host 450 soccer, lacrosse, and field hockey teams from the South Shore and Cape Cod, as well as leagues for flag football, Wiffle ball, kickball, and ultimate Fris bee.
The ambitious plan includes space for martial arts training, a children's learning and activity center, four birthday party rooms, a cafe, and an arcade.
The JunglePlex will also be equipped to handle conventions, trade shows, and corporate functions for local businesses and municipalities, according to a company official.
The announcement ended more than a year of speculation about the future of the defunct soccer venue at 8 Natalie Way, off Long Pond Road.
A grand opening of the $1.5 million complex is planned for mid-December. The company has been developing plans for this project for over a year, said Haveles, who owns the 3A Cafe on Court Street in Plymouth and is one of the four partners who formed Plymouth Adventure Park.
Plymouth Adventure Park purchased the 7.3-acre dome site for $3 million on Aug. 22, according to the Plymouth County Registry of Deeds. .
``We'll be creative in our approach to league development," said Michael Pieroni, the athletic director for the JunglePlex. ``The sheer size of the facility will afford us the ability to create and/ or host a wide variety of athletic leagues, tournaments, and clinics."
The property off Long Pond Road has been closed to the public since Jan. 23, 2005 -- the night the Plymouth Sports Dome collapsed under the weight of heavy snow .
The pressurized dome was made of high-grade polyurethane, and covered three fields. No one was inside when the roof caved in.
The Plymouth Sports Dome had been a popular venue for indoor soccer, field hockey, and lacrosse, and hosted more than 4,000 league games annually.
After the dome collapsed, its owners tried unsuccessfully to build a new steel facility in its place and later decided to sell the property instead.
The new building will be vastly different than the Plymouth Sports Dome, according to Haveles. The warehouse-like structure will be constructed entirely of steel, and its ceilings will be 46 feet high.
Innovative Building Solutions, a construction firm based in Plymouth, will oversee the project, and photos of their progress will be posted on the JunglePlex website , www.jungleplex.net, Haveles said.
``It's a new construction, a new design," he said. ``This is a permanent steel construction . . . it's important for parents to realize that their kids will be safe, and what happened last winter won't happen again."
``It's going to have a rainforest jungle theme," said Haveles. ``We're making it look cool."
Emily Sweeney can be reached at esweeney@globe.com. 
