FULL STORY: Schroeder-Manatee Ranch unveils Premier lights

LAKEWOOD RANCH — As children chased soccer balls and brandished lacrosse sticks at the Premier Sports Campus Nov. 14, officials from Lakewood Ranch developer Schroeder-Manatee Ranch on Nov. 14 celebrated the mark of the complex’s next phase — lights.

SMR invested $1.1 million to install sports floodlights on eight of 22 sports fields and turned on the lights for the first time during Monday’s ceremony.

“It’s the next step in elevating our game with the sports campus,” SMR President and CEO Rex Jensen said. “This is something the (company) cares a lot about.”

Members of SMR’s board of directors, who were in town for a quarterly board meeting, made sure to attend the event, as well. SMR Board Chairman Bob Gardner said the board’s support for the project and its dedication to a long-term vision for the development of Lakewood Ranch have been instrumental for seeing Premier launch and expand. So far, the company has invested more than $2 million in the project.

“Without the tremendous support (of the Uihlein family, who owns SMR) all the way through, none of this would be possible,” Gardner said.

SMR turned a watermelon field adjacent to the Lakewood Ranch Post Office into open fields for amateur sports about one year ago. At that time, the company purposely opened the fields without amenities, planning instead to solicit feedback from users of the facilities before adding more elaborate features. The No. 1 request, Jensen said, has been for lights, so teams could use the fields longer.

Already, the facility has impacted local businesses, with tournaments causing local restaurants to run out of food and meet sales quotas within days’ of the month’s start, for example. A Labor Day weekend soccer tournament alone was estimated to generate about $8 million.

With 12 major events already lined up for 2012, officials expect the facility to have an economic impact of more than $62 million over the next year, as Premier hosts the men and women’s Olympic soccer and other major teams.

“These lights enable us to do so much for our community,” SMR’s Director of Sports Tim Mulqueen said, adding that hosting the Olympic teams would not be possible without lighted fields. “There’s nothing like this training facility. This is unique.”

SMR’s long-term plans for the Premier Sports Campus include adding a concession area, as well as bathroom facilities. Jensen said SMR installed lights sooner than he expected, but the company does not have immediate plans to install other amenities at the complex at this time.

Contact Pam Eubanks at [email protected].