St. Cloud’s long talked-about Apex Athletic Center is finally inching from talk to action. Wednesday night, the St. Cloud Area School Board approved a fresh batch of construction bids and purchasing contracts that move the indoor facility on the Apollo High School campus closer to a spring groundbreaking.
The board signed off on roughly a dozen construction contracts under Bid Package 2, worth about $5.2 million, along with turf and athletic equipment purchases that add roughly $705,235 to the tab. The project will be funded with proceeds from the district’s 2025A school-building bonds, and district officials are eyeing a May start for construction with completion expected in April 2027.
According to KNSI, the board “awarded 12 construction contracts totaling approximately $5.2 million” that cover interior work and site development for the indoor multipurpose facility. The district also chose Sprinturf to provide the indoor playing surface at $405,540 and contracted H2I Group to supply athletic equipment, including batting cages and a divider curtain, for $299,695, bringing an additional $705,235 into Wednesday’s approvals. Those purchases and contracts are intended to push the $15 million project past planning and into actual construction later this spring.
Contract winners and price tags
“Here is a breakdown of the $5.2 million in approved contracts,” according to KNSI. Major awards include DRSC Concrete Inc. for concrete work at $829,845, Taracon Precast for precast concrete at $610,630, Lake Country Mechanical for mechanical systems at $814,000, Design Electric Inc. for electrical work at $767,977 and Joe’s Excavating for earthwork and site utilities at $705,000. Other approved vendors will take on glazing, flooring, fire protection, fencing and paving as part of Bid Package 2.
Funding, schedule and what's next
The work approved Wednesday will be covered through proceeds from the district’s 2025A school-building bonds, and voters signed off on the two-question referendum on April 8, 2025, according to St. Cloud Area School District 742. District materials show design work stretched through late 2025, bidding began in January 2026 and construction is scheduled to start in May with an anticipated April 2027 completion, per the district’s project timeline. “This referendum reflects 10 years of careful planning and community collaboration,” Superintendent Laurie Putnam said in the district release.
What it means for students and the community
District officials say the center will feature an indoor turf field, a walking track, batting cages and golf simulators that will serve teams across the district and be available for community rentals. Local coverage leading up to the meeting noted that the board will continue reviewing designs, logos and scheduling for the facility, according to St. Cloud Live. The board is expected to return to design approvals in the coming months before construction activity ramps up on the Apollo campus.
