DENVER, CO The city and county of Denver, Colorado, Barker Rinker Seacat Architecture and Adolfson & Peterson Construction recently hosted a "topping out" ceremony for the new recreation center named after late Councilwoman Carla Madison. The tradition of topping out a building is a milestone event for the construction of the building, signifying the top-most point of the structure has been reached. Denver Mayor Michael Hancock and city officials, along with the construction and design team members, signed the ceremonial beam before it was placed on top of the structure being constructed.

The Carla Madison Recreation Center will be Denver's largest community recreation facility and the first urban recreation center located in Colorado. The 60,000-square-foot facility will be the crown jewel of the city's community recreation program, located at Colfax Avenue and Josephine Street. Fulfilling a long-standing need for a centrally-located facility within the city, the new center will serve as yet another catalyst along the Colfax business corridor to help drive economic growth and transform the area into a thriving cultural and residential area.

The four-story structure will offer an eight-lane pool, a leisure pool for families, a large cardio-weight room, full size basketball court, and diverse programming that promote healthy and active lifestyles. The facility also includes ample community gathering space to support a variety of neighborhood interests. Planned amenities on the site include an outdoor climbing wall, 0.25-acre dog park, table tennis, slackline area, large picnic tables, onsite bike parking, a 15-bike B-Cycle station, climbing boulders and 130 parking spaces. Integrating sustainable elements, the facility is targeting LEED Gold Certification.

"Carla Madison Rec Center will be Denver's largest recreation center once complete, and today's milestone is one more step to realizing a service that this community has deserved for a long time," said Mayor Hancock. "I look forward to the final build out so our residents in central Denver have a new place to be happy, healthy and active together."

The construction is on schedule to be completed fall of 2017.