YMCA scores with urban soccer plan for downtown Davenport

An idea that the YMCA of the Iowa Mississippi Valley has been kicking around the past couple years will bring urban soccer and a new amenity to downtown Davenport next year.  The Y plans to expand its sports programming with the creation of three new outdoor soccer fields. The urban soccer complex will be built […]

An idea that the YMCA of the Iowa Mississippi Valley has been kicking around the past couple years will bring urban soccer and a new amenity to downtown Davenport next year.  The Y plans to expand its sports programming with the creation of three new outdoor soccer fields. The urban soccer complex will be built on the property adjacent to the three-year-old R. Richard Bittner YMCA, located at River Drive and Fourth Street.  Brad Martell, CEO of the YMCA, said the plans call for three separate fields, which will open up soccer opportunities to those from age 4 to adults. “These are urban soccer fields so they are a little bigger than a basketball court and have nets on all four sides so the ball never leaves the area,” he told the QCBJ recently. 

The new fields will be open to YMCA members, but Mr. Martell said there are discussions about making the sports fields also available to the public. “We haven’t figured out the programming yet, but we’ll do leagues there,” he said, adding “We’d love to keep it open all the time.”  The fields will be built on the site at 604 E. Fourth St., where crews have been demolishing the former Astra Furniture Clearance Center for several weeks.  The YMCA of the Iowa Mississippi Valley purchased the longtime warehouse building in 2018 for $300,000 thanks to a gift from Dick Bittner, Mr. Martell said.  The YMCA recently hired Bob Holst of Holst Demolition & Excavating, of LeClaire, at a cost of $70,000 to demolish the building, he added. 

Y bought land for fields

Surrounded by land the YMCA previously acquired to build its new downtown Y, the former warehouse site was a piece of property that YMCA leaders knew they wanted to control, Mr. Martel said.  \“We own 13 acres at the YMCA, sold four to TWG for the 188-housing complex and sold some to Y&J (Properties) for their parking lot, but we didn’t own the middle part of this,” he said.  At the time the Y acquired the site, there were no immediate plans for its use, Mr. Martel added.  “This summer, we went to the YMCA General Assembly in Atlanta and three vendors were selling these at the convention,” he said, adding that the Y already is meeting with potential suppliers and plans to get multiple bids.  The YMCA has budgeted $1 million for the fields.  Shive-Hattery Inc., Bettendorf, will design the fields along with the vendor. He anticipates bids will go out in late January or early February, but said the city still must approve the final plan. Construction could begin in March or April.  Mr. Martell said the YMCA is excited about the prospect of bringing urban soccer to not only the Quad Cities but Iowa. “This will be a brand new program for us, we’ll be the first in Iowa,” he said. 

Urban soccer a success

In fact, through his national YMCA connections, he has learned how successful other Ys, including Crossroad YMCA in Indiana, have been with introducing urban soccer leagues. 

“They play 5 on 5, the games are 40-minutes long and so the play is constant. Players have to make decisions very fast,” he said, adding that urban soccer is played in a much smaller area than traditional soccer.  Mr. Martel also is thrilled by what redeveloping that parcel of land – along with all the other new developments in that vicinity of downtown – will do for the east gateway to downtown Davenport.  And he is not alone. Kyle Carter, executive director of the Downtown Davenport Partnership and vice president of place management for the Quad Cities Chamber, called the urban soccer complex “a wonderful addition to a corridor that now boasts some of our most exciting energy – where just a few short years ago it was primarily the vacant remnants of a railyard.” “Diversifying development for even greater engagement of families is another wrinkle in the evolution of downtown,” Mr. Carter told the QCBJ. “The urban soccer field will draw thousands of families over time who will inevitably discover more of downtown and I’m glad to see something so unique providing a glimpse of our future.”

Fields part of grander vision

In fact, Mr. Martell said the urban soccer fields are actually part of a grander vision the YMCA has for its prime real estate at the east entrance of downtown.  Opened two years ago this month, the $24 million facility downtown Y features two pools, a full-sized gym, a ⅛-mile track, strength and cardio equipment and group exercise spaces as well as views of the Mississippi River.  The campus, which also included a separate YMCA Early Learning Center, could one day, he said, be joined by a waterpark. “It would be a nice vision, a nice goal for us and our mission,” Mr. Martel said. “Something called money is the only thing holding us up.”   However, knowing the water feature was a future dream, he said, sanitary sewer already has been installed out to the available site during the Y’s construction.  “Once TWG gets its apartments finished, when you turn on River Drive, that’s a different sight than 10 years ago,” he added.