After months of delays brought on by an unusually wet spring, the Auburn Activity Center and Gymnasium will open Oct. 17.

But before that day, the City will dedicate the building with an open house Tuesday, Oct. 11.

As part of the festivities, the new 9,850-square-foot gymnasium will offer a host of athletic and recreation options for free and open play, including an indoor playground for kids 5 and under, open gym basketball, and a rotating court featuring pickleball, badminton, floor hockey, volleyball and futsal.

Individuals may also learn to climb the new rock wall.

The Auburn Senior Activity Center Wellness Team will even provide a free dinner.

The actual opening day is Oct. 17. Hours will be 8 a.m. to about 9:30 p.m. daily.

Features will include a covered connection to the existing Senior Activity Center, parking for 68 cars and four vans, and a drop-off zone. It will share an entrance with the present Parks, Arts and Recreation Administrative Building, which one day in the not-so-distant future will become the Teen/Tween Center.

“During the daytime the building will be used for senior programs, adult programs and everybody,” said Daryl Faber, director of Auburn Parks, Arts and Recreation. “From 2:30 to 7:30 p.m. there will be camps and clinics, tutoring, homework assistance, healthy eating programs and a huge climbing wall off of the back of it for those type of classes.

“There will be a transportation plan with the school district, and it will be an after-school meal site of the school district so that those kids who come here after school will be able to get their free snack, which is awesome,” Faber said.

“We’ll have a full schedule of summer and fall programs for youth, teens, adults and seniors, including pickle ball, volleyball and basketball … We’ll have an outdoor climbing wall program and leagues and clinics for youth and adult senior sports. We’re really excited.”

BLRB Architects, a Tacoma-based architectural firm, designed the building, and the general contractor was Christensen Inc. The total cost for the building is $2,896,200.

Construction on the Auburn Community Center, phase 2, of the overall campus construction project, is slated to begin next year.

The activity center and gymnasium complement the 21-acre recreational and educational Les Gove Community Campus. The cluster of amenities includes a library, the Parks and Recreation Administration Building, the Senior Activity Center and White River Valley Museum.

The campus includes the popular Rotary Spray Park, public art, bocce courts, horseshoe pits, a softball pit, and the 32,000-square-foot Barrier Free Playground. A half-mile paved trail encircles an attractive bermed and treed lined area.

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Dedication, open house

• Date: Tuesday, Oct. 11

• Time: 5-8 p.m., with opening ceremonies set for 6.

• Place: Les Gove Community Campus, 910 9th St. SE.