By Dan Weber
NKyTribune sports reporter
There’s a simple reason that Fort Thomas Schools Superintendent Brian Robinson could say with such certitude that “this is just another reason why this is the greatest city in the Commonwealth.”
Because Robinson was standing in it – and on it.
This $19 million athletic complex the Fort Thomas folks were dedicating Wednesday evening on the old fort property was everything they hoped it would be when they broke ground for it just 15 months ago.
“A great day to be a Bluebird,” Robinson said, “a great day to be a member of the Bluebird Nation.”
He would get no argument from the 500 or so locals of all ages who made it here despite the mile-long line traffic backup and ugly weather.
“A new athletic complex,” Kentucky State Representative Mike Clines called it, adding quickly, “a new community complex” making sure you understood that this was one of those deals they like to do here where everybody is a part of it.
That would include Kentucky legislators, some “who will never see it,” Clines said, but agreed to chip in $5 million to make it happen.
And when we say “it,” we mean all of these things: the new fieldhouse, concession plaza, referees’ room, multipurpose room, locker rooms, athletic training space, coaches’ offices, a main entrance with that classic Highlands’ “H” above it, and a Bluebird-blue new track where they’ll be able to host district and regional meets.
Gone, but not forgotten, is the old soccer field for a new flashy artificial turf one. We say “not forgotten” because some of the folks who played here remembered what it was like.
“No more games played in mud and cat litter,” or what they called “semi-grass,” one former player said in the slick video put together by Eli Hills and the Highlands High School Video Broadcasting Team.
“An outstanding opportunity for our schools, for our entire community,” Robinson said. The Bluebirds get to compete here and the community gets to meet and train here. And with plenty of new parking.
“A generational project,” Robinson called the Tower Park Athletic Complex. “A destination place, a place people will want to be a part of.”
There’s a million dollars of private donations in this, as well, Robinson says, and another million from other non-governmental sources.
One after another, as the people spoke, they echoed this refrain, or some version of it that they know makes Fort Thomas special: “Rich in tradition, focused on the future.”
Put another way, they’re “standing on the shoulders of the champions who came before us,” but looking to leave something behind for those still to come.
From the smiles and applause as they headed off to student-led tours of the facility, the crowd seemed to agree.
Contact Dan Weber at dweber3440@aol.com. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @dweber3440.
