After tornado damage, Brook Park Recreation Center could reopen next week

After a tornado outbreak in August, Berea and Middleburg Heights opened their recreation centers to folks living in Brook Park after their city's center was forced to close due to all the damage.

Soon, residents will no longer need to use other facilities because Brook Park Mayor Edward Orcutts says they could partially reopen the rec center next week.

In Brook Park, residents use the recreation center for a list of things, such as sports, classes, meetings, etc., but they haven't been able to since their recreation center had to close its doors.

The center stopped fully operating after multiple tornados tore through Northeast Ohio in early August and ripped the metal roof off the building, causing extensive damages.

Two months later, you can still see the damage to the walls, ceiling tiles and HVAC systems. The city immediately started cleaning up and repairing the damages following the storms.

Orcutts says the work helped prepare the building for a possible partial reopening. If all goes well, they could welcome residents back as soon as Monday.

"We are awaiting on the structural engineer's report. We believe we'll have that this week. If that is a good report that says we can have people inside the building, we will have people in as soon as possible.," Orcutt said.

If they open, a lot of options will be offered as they were before.

"We'll have our basketball gyms, both the main gym and the mini gym, open. You know, hopefully, we'll have our community room open as well for birthday parties and city council meetings," said Chris Wetmore, the recreation director for the city of Brook Park

But not everything will be 100% operating because there are still repairs to be done.

"We will have some limitations in some areas that will not be able to be opened, like our concession area; we have skylights that need to be replaced," Orcutt continued, "Some areas of our building, if we do open, will not have heat or air conditioning, because out of the 18 rooftop units that we have, four of them are damaged and need replaced, and six others have ductwork that has been disconnected."

But, even if it's just a partial reopening, the center's staff and the city's residents are ready to see those empty halls filled with the community again.

"We here at the recreation center, we're a family, you know, and we want our family all back together," Wetmore said.

Come election day, voting will take place in Brook Park's rec center gym. The city hopes by the end of the year, the center will be fully operating.

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