Now Deerfield Park Districts can, in a sense, “run with the Bulls.”  

     The facility formerly used as a practice center for the Chicago Bulls is now a recreation center for district residents.

      The Sachs Recreation Center, formerly the Multiplex, opened in May in Deerfield Park Plaza on Lake Cook Road in the northern Chicago suburb. It fulfills several items district officials and residents had long wanted, including gymnasium space and additional walking paths.

      The newly renovated center boasts three gyms: the full-size gym formerly used by the Bulls, plus two, smaller, middle-school-sized gyms.

      Also part of the facility are an indoor pool, three tennis courts, two racquetball courts, a child-care center, a game room, two weight rooms, a 3,000-square-foot exercise and fitness area, a five-lane indoor track, a cafe/food service area, rental space for parties and events, programming space, steam rooms, sauna and two whirlpools.

      Opening the center fulfills two longtime desires of district residents and officials: gymnasium space, plus additional walking paths. The new Sachs Recreation Center also provides district residents with a public fitness facility for the first time and makes available additional pool time for the highly ranked Coho Swim Club.

      “For decades we had agreements with the school districts to use their gym facilities in return for grounds maintenance,” said district Director Linda Gryziecki. But in recent years, four elementary schools were closed and those gyms were lost, she explained, adding, “We’ve always had a gymnasium on our long-range plan.”

      At approximately 100,000 square feet, the former Multiplex, which closed as a health club several years ago, is larger than the district had in mind. But when the facility became available for sale again in 2008, Deerfield seized the opportunity to purchase the building and provide additional recreational facilities for its residents.

      “We weighed the cost and benefits of building a gym, compared to purchasing the Multiplex and renovating it,” said Gryziecki.

      The district now not only can offer a wide range of programs and facilities it otherwise couldn’t have, it also has room to grow.

      “It’s going to provide tremendous opportunities for us for the future,” Gryziecki said. “It’s given us a lot of programming options we didn’t have before,” including a before and after kindergarten program, currently unavailable in Deerfield.

      Of course, as is the case with virtually any remodeling job, unexpected challenges arose. “It’s just like remodeling your kitchen,” Gryziecki said. “One thing leads to another. We had a lot of costs we didn’t expect to have.”

      In the end, said PHN’s Isela Catania, project coordinator and designer, these difficulties worked to the district’s advantage.

      “The project went from cleaning up the space and making minor changes to a full-blown gut-and-remodeling project,” she said, citing extensive water damage as an example. 

      “Issues would appear every day. We would discover all kinds of things that needed attention. We’d think we would have an area that just needed fit and finishing, and then it turns out we had to gut it and redo that section.

      “But now it’s a more polished facility.”

      And challenges became pluses. For example, Deerfield took a look at the black and white color scheme of the existing cafe. The end result? A cafeteria with a fun, retro ‘50s look -- and the original flooring.

      Deerfield residents have been using the new facility since May. “The community is excited and enthusiastic,” Gryziecki said. “And we’re excited about the opportunities we have now.”