A long-awaited indoor sports facility in Chatham has officially opened its doors, turning part of the former Navistar industrial site into a new hub for recreation. The CK Flex Plex celebrated its grand opening Wednesday, offering residents a place to play soccer, volleyball, badminton, pickleball and table tennis year-round. Owner Philip Ong said seeing the project finally come together has been both rewarding and emotional. “It’s very exciting,” Ong said. “A few stress moments along the way, but I could not be happier. I am very proud of this space.” The 37,000-square-foot complex has already begun hosting leagues and tournaments, drawing participants from across southwestern Ontario. “Right now, we offer indoor soccer, badminton, pickleball, table tennis, and volleyball is the big one here,” Ong said. “In the future we’ll expand to many other sports. Dodgeball is something I have in my mind — a lot of people have been really interested in that.” Ong told CTV News that early events have already attracted strong regional interest. “Our volleyball tournament has a lot of teams from Windsor,” he said. “I really appreciate those guys coming to support us. Hopefully we get more people from London as well. If you want to join us weekly for a league, we’re definitely going to have it for you too.” While the current facility is now fully operational, Ong said it represents only the first phase of a much larger vision. “There’s a big plan later on that we will have full-size indoor soccer,” he explained. “This is a stepping stone. We’re gauging the demand, testing out our ideas, and then we’ll apply those lessons to the big site.” Ong credited local partners and the municipality for helping bring the project to life. “I cannot do this without the support from the Don Tetrault group and from the town itself,” he said. “Everyone has been really helpful — from the permits to the contractors, I couldn’t be happier. The speed of this thing coming together blows my mind.” The facility occupies part of a building owned by Orchard Heights Properties Inc., which purchased the former Navistar lands after the plant closed in 2011. Company co-owner Don Tetrault said the space had previously been used only for storage. “We had the building here, and it was just used for warehousing,” Tetrault said. “Now it’s being used for a facility for Chatham-Kent — for the people of Chatham-Kent.” Tetrault said there are already plans to expand within the existing structure. “The goal would be basically opening that wall back up — about 22,000 square feet that’s warehousing right now — and basically that will be the expansion,” he said. “Our whole main goal is to hopefully build a whole new rec center. That’s our real goal.” He added that there is growing interest in further development on the 80-acre former Navistar property. “Yes, we have interest,” Tetrault stated. “We have a sponsor in mind that wants to work with us on raising money to build it, and partners looking at putting money in.” Mayor Darrin Canniff called the opening a major milestone for the municipality. “Three months ago, we were talking about it as a vision. Today it’s open,” Canniff said. “It’s a beautiful facility — something Chatham-Kent has needed for a long time.” He said the complex addresses a long-standing shortage of indoor recreation space, particularly during the winter months. “So many people have said we need somewhere to play sports in the winter,” Canniff said. “This is the opportunity. It’s something that’s going to get more people active and keep people in the community.” Canniff also praised the project as an example of effective collaboration between the public and private sectors. “Public-private partnerships are the way of the future,” he said. “This is an opportunity to work together to create something the municipality doesn’t have to create on its own — and we’re going to come up with a better product at a more competitive price working together.” He said the Flex Plex could be the first step toward an even larger sports complex in the future. “This facility fills a big gap that we have,” Canniff said. “Philip has bigger plans, and we will be there working together because this is a huge need in our community.” An official ribbon cutting ceremony with officials took place Wednesday, with a grand opening open house scheduled for Friday, February 7. According to Ong, seeing the community embrace the new facility has made the effort worthwhile. “I am extremely happy,” he exclaimed. “Very happy and very proud to be here.”
