BROOK PARK, Ohio — The Brook Park Recreation Center will open a little later the next few days to allow demolition to begin on roofs damaged in August 2024 during a tornado outbreak. On March 26 and 27, the recreation center will open at noon.
If you've been inside the rec center working out, playing basketball, or using the community room recently, you've likely still seen cleanup underway.
"We're excited to see our facility without buckets in the hallways," said Recreation Director Chris Wetmore.
Wetmore said water was still getting inside the building after tornadoes ripped off the natatorium roof and damaged others. Now that the weather is breaking, crews will start work on the roofs.
Work will also begin to clear out debris and put up some barriers to stop water from getting into the building.
"When it took that hit on August 6th, it was felt all around in the community," said Wetmore.
Back in October, the recreation center reopened after being shut down for months. At that time, Berea and Middleburg Heights opened their doors to let residents use their facilities.
"Being able to come back at 100%, and making sure the facility is healthy and as structurally strong as it can be is something that we are excited about. We're proud to tell our residents we worked through this, we're Brook Park strong and hold through on that," said Wetmore.
The work is expected to be completed by mid-July. In the meantime, Wetmore said pardon the dust as the work continues.
