Humble ISD, YMCA break ground on sports fields for children with special needs

A $4.8 million sports facility for students with special needs is under construction within master-planned community The Groves, which is located on West Lake Houston Parkway near Summerwood.

The Adaptive Sports Complex, which is funded through a partnership between the YMCA of Greater Houston, Humble ISD and private donors, is expected to open before fall 2017. The facility will be situated between Humble ISD’s Elementary School No. 28 and Middle School No. 9 when they open in August.  

The partners broke ground on the facility in November after raising 80 percent of the facility’s cost, said Mark Koenig, co-chairman of Sports For All, a leadership committee for the project.

“Athletics is an important part of learning and building skills and relationships and understanding how to collaborate with other people,” HISD Superintendent Elizabeth Fagen said.

At build-out, the sports complex will feature two multipurpose fields that could be used for soccer, softball, flag football and the Special Olympics.

The facility will be owned, maintained and utilized by HISD during the school day while the YMCA will use it during the evenings and on weekends.

“We’re building a place where parents and their children, and now teachers and their students can now reap the benefits of physical education,” Koenig said.