Lakewood Ranch's Premier Campus Is About to Become the Neighborhood's Pool and Pickleball Hub

The best view of the new Athletics & Aquatics Center at Premier Sports Campus North is from the roof of the Lakewood Ranch Library. Manatee County's director of sports and leisure, Molly White, has gone up there many times since construction began in February 2025, according to Your Observer. From up there in mid-September, the buildings were done, the pools were full, the pickleball courts were painted, and the concrete walking trail had been poured.

The biggest and most costly feature on the site is the heated 50-meter competition pool, and it will be free for any individual who wants to swim in it. The county project cost $44 million. The pickleball courts are the part you pay for. So for a lot of Lakewood Ranch households, the most valuable new amenity coming to the neighborhood this year sits outside any village clubhouse and has no membership fee.

The Pool Was Almost Half This Size

The county first planned a 25-meter pool. In 2021, swimmers, coaches and parents packed the commission chambers to make the case for a competition-size pool, and the county switched to the 50-meter design, Your Observer reported. Some of those families came back to the chambers this past June to say thank you. One Tsunami swim parent told commissioners the new pool "will save families countless hours on the road, reduce transportation costs and give parents and athletes more time at home, at school and in our community," according to the Observer.

That fight explains why the pool is built for competition. It can be set up as eight long-course lanes, or as about 18 lanes running across the width. A 25-by-15-foot scoreboard at one end can stream races live. Both pools use Myrtha construction. Manatee County's captain of aquatic safety, John Linxwiler, told the Bradenton Herald that USA Swimming uses Myrtha pools for the Olympic Trials. The water is heated and cooled by a $1 million geothermal yard measuring 40 by 40 feet. The two pools hold 832,704 gallons between them.

None of that changes the price for the public. Teams will pay to use the pool. Individual members of the public swim free, because Manatee County does not charge residents to use its pools. The smaller therapy pool and the 50-meter pool both have lifts for anyone who needs help getting in and out of the water. Public Safety division chief Chet Brown told Your Observer the layout leaves "plenty of space between the two pools for the public and the swim teams."

Pickleball Is the Part With a Price

The athletics side covers 44,000 square feet and holds 24 pickleball courts. Fourteen of them are under a shade cover. A shaded hitting wall is going in too. The county modeled the waiting area on G.T. Bray Park's courts, with artificial turf, tables, benches and paddle racks.

The pricing matches G.T. Bray as well, which matters if you already drive to Bradenton to play. White told the Bradenton Herald the fees are consistent with that park.

The number of open-play courts will change with the time of day. White said staff will track the reservation software to see which hours are in highest demand and make sure drop-in players still have a chance to get on a court. A monthly member who plays three times a week pays a little under $3 a session. Someone who drops in twice a month pays $10. That makes the drop-in rate a reasonable way to try the courts before committing.

There are no tennis courts. White told Your Observer that the open land behind the pickleball courts could fit tennis if funding becomes available. For now, that space has a walking path that loops around a pond.

One Parking Lot, Several Reasons to Show Up

The general address for Premier Sports Campus is 5895 Premier Sports Blvd., and the new center sits beside the Lakewood Ranch Library off Rangeland Parkway.

The library came first. Manatee County reopened the first floor and opened the new second floor on Friday, October 23. The second floor adds study rooms, collaborative study areas, self-service technology and computer access. The adult collection has moved upstairs. A teenager could study upstairs while a parent swims laps a few hundred feet away.

The center itself adds:

• A community room with floor-to-ceiling windows facing the pools. It can be rented for parties as one large space or split into two rooms, each with its own TV and access to a catering kitchen.
• The library rooftop, which can also be rented and looks out over the whole Premier campus.
• Food trucks, which the county plans to bring in.
• Locker rooms with showers, a family room for needs such as breastfeeding, and separate restrooms for each side so the pickleball floors stay dry.
• More than 240 parking spaces.

More is due on the campus by the end of the year. White told Your Observer that two synthetic soccer fields and a Manatee County Sheriff's Office substation should be finished alongside the center. "We'll be celebrating a lot of things," she said.

What Is Still Unsettled Before Opening Day

The county has not announced an opening date. White told the Bradenton Herald in early October, "We're just working on dates for a grand opening but aiming for the end of December." The county's listing for the facility still says it is coming soon. Until that changes, treat the details below as the plan, not a fixed schedule.

1. Expected hours. The Bradenton Herald reports the facility will generally be open 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Fridays, and 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
2. A swim meet for the grand opening. Lakewood Ranch Swim Association Lightning, the Parrish Bull Sharks Swim Team and the Sarasota Tsunami Swim Team are planning a meet for opening day, Lightning coach Steve Lubrino told Your Observer. White has described a community celebration with open pickleball play and local swimmers in the new pool.
3. Who trains where. Lightning and Tsunami already share lanes at the John Marble Aquatics Center and plan to share at Premier too. The Bull Sharks will keep practicing at the Lincoln Aquatic Center in Palmetto. Water polo and underwater hockey teams have also asked about using the pool.
4. Staffing. Not counting lifeguards, no more than six full-time employees will run the center seven days a week.

Filling the Weeks Until the Pool Opens

There's plenty going on outdoors before then, most of it a short drive west at Main Street and Waterside.

• Friday, November 6, 6 to 9 p.m. Music on Main honors local veterans and heroes with a performance by Passerine. The event is free and benefits Sarasota Southside Rotary Club. The same night includes a Children's Entrepreneur Market with booths run by young sellers.
• Friday, November 13, 6 to 9 p.m. Movie in the Park returns to Waterside Park, 7301 Island Cove Terrace. It's free and outdoors.
• Sunday, November 15, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. CycleFest marks its 50th anniversary with a ride starting at 8100 Main Street. The Sarasota Manatee Bicycle Club hosts, with 20-, 35- and 66-mile routes. Registration is required. The club's page lists $65 through October 31 and $70 after that.
• Friday, December 4, 6 to 9 p.m. Music on Main features FM Station FLA and benefits Suncoast Therapeutic Equine Partners.
• Friday, December 11, 6 to 9 p.m. Movie in the Park returns to Waterside Park. The event page lists The Polar Express, sponsored by Grace Community Church.
• December 19 and 20, 4 to 8 p.m. Christmas on Main offers free rides and games from 4 to 6:30 p.m., followed by a candlelight service from 7 to 8 p.m. No registration is needed.

If the county keeps to its end-of-December target, the Premier campus could have its grand opening only days after Christmas on Main.

When clients compare Lakewood Ranch villages, I walk them through which homes are a short drive from public amenities like the Premier campus on Rangeland Parkway. If you'd like to know how your home's location fits into that picture, Kelly Rosenberg is happy to prepare a personalized home valuation or set up a market consultation. Just call when it suits you.