The City of Aurora, Colo., plans to unveil in May a $30 million rec center featuring a lazy river, an indoor wave pool, a water slide, a kiddie pool and a lap pool — 184,223 gallons of water in all, funded by taxes collected through recreational marijuana sales.
Aurora’s 60,000-square-foot Central Recreation Center will debut amenities that city officials claim are the first of their kind in America. The water slide, for example, is an interactive experience lined with neon lights, with a twisting course that leads outdoors and back in.
The pool area also features a state-of-the-art filtration system that utilizes UV sterilization, as well as luxury finishes such as imported Italian tile in the locker rooms and hand-painted German glass on an exterior wall.
Beyond the natatorium, the rec center offers aerobics studios, indoor basketball courts, a walking and running track, weight lifting and cardio fitness space, and an outdoor yoga area. Community members can also take cooking classes or try solving the built-in escape room.
According to the Sentinel, construction on the Central Recreation Center began in 2017, with the land purchase made nearly two decades earlier in 1998.