Our final Club Y.E.S. article was written by Neha Kodali. Additional thanks to Sarah Josephs for her research on the founding timeline of the Plymouth Creek Center. Thank you again to all our amazing volunteers!

Plymouth Creek Center is a site for groups to gather and celebrate special events, enjoy cultural and educational pursuits, and partake in other social and recreational activities. It is also a place where weddings, banquets, meetings, and receptions are held.  

The naming of Plymouth Creek Center itself took over two months. On February 8, 1999, the Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission was asked to find a name for the new activity center. Names were thrown out such as “Plymouth Pavilion” and “Plymouth Community Center and Sports Dome”; names with “Activity Center/ Sports Dome” as taglines were also suggested, but none were finalized. The department started working with cable televisions and local newspapers to hold contests asking the public for name ideas for the establishment to be reviewed. Even though the announcements for the naming contest were sent to various school districts, newspapers, shown on cable T.V. and posted on the city’s webpage, no name suggestions were received by the deadline. On April 11, 1999, five total names were presented to vote on suggested earlier by the youth advisory council, staff, and council member Thompson. Ideas such as “Plymouth Activity and Arts Center” and “Plymouth Creek Center” were favored because they better described the facility that was being built. The name Plymouth Creek Center was also liked because the name included the fact that it was in Plymouth Creek Park. On April 16, 1999, the name for the new recreational facility was voted on and approved by the council as Plymouth Creek Center. 

Construction is also being planned for 2021 which involves expanding the center about 80,000 square feet and incorporating three new wings; the Event wing (meeting rooms and ballroom), the Education wing (active adults, youth, arts, music and STEM rooms), and the Active wing (year-round indoor walking track, gym, fitness rooms and indoor playground). Phase 1 is scheduled to end in fall 2021, and includes the construction of the Active wing and expansion of the parking lot. Phase 2 is scheduled to begin October 2021 and end in fall of 2022. Phase 2 will include the construction of the Education wing and the renovation of the existing building. The new editions to the Plymouth Creek Center will allow for more celebratory events to take place, more recreational activities to be open, and for more educational pursuits to be made.  Changes now include an updated name, with the Plymouth Creek Center now transitioning to the Plymouth Community Center to demonstrate the building’s evolving uses.