Could a new community center be built in Rancho Cordova? What’s in the works
A community center is in the works for Rancho Cordova as the city expands its entertainment and recreation options for residents.
The future community center could potentially include a library, ballroom, black box theater and meeting space for community groups, according to city spokesperson Maria Kniestedt.
The Rancho Cordova City Council has repeatedly discussed the potential acquisition of multiple locations for the project, most recently in closed session at its July 6 meeting, according to Kniestedt.
Three existing Vision Service Provider buildings at 10845 International Drive, 10875 International Drive and 3188 Zinfandel Drive are options, according to the meeting agenda. Another option includes office buildings at 11155 International Drive and 11185 International Drive.
“The existing buildings could provide a more cost-effective and quicker alternative to bringing an amenity of this nature to the community,” Kniestedt said.
Land parcels along Rancho Cordova Parkway near the Kavala Ranch home development are also under consideration.
“The city continues to research existing building options that could be used for this purpose,” Kniestedt said, noting that the options discussed are just potential locations for now.
There is no timeline for when a community center could come to Rancho Cordova, Kniestedt said.
Rancho Cordova’s current main community center is located at Hagan Community Park, offering a recreation center, picnic areas and sporting facilities like tennis courts and fields.
Along with the potential new community center, Rancho Cordova also has an arena in the works, bringing professional sports to the city.
The 10,000-capacity venue, with 7,500 fixed seats, is planned for the corner of Kilgore Road and Trade Center Drive. It is expected to become home to the Sacramento area’s two Major Arena Soccer League teams and could later expand to include housing, hotels, retail, restaurants, a card room and the city’s first movie theater and bowling alley.
The project brought Rancho Cordova to the national stage in a new commercial that debuted during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The 30-second spot for the Dova Arena project showed clips from previous Sacramento sporting events, including former soccer team the Sacramento Knights, and said that “a championship legacy returns.”
Joshua Wood, a local developer and part of the ownership group behind the project, told The Sacramento Bee in late May that the privately funded project would break ground this summer.
The city of Rancho Cordova is not directly contributing money to the project, according to Wood and Kniestedt, though the city has waived some fees, may be giving access to city-owned land and could receive financial benefits.
The most recent agreement reported on by The Bee proposes shared future revenue streams, development impact fee and building permit fee waivers, and the dedication of a portion of a 13-acre city-owned parcel, which Kniestedt previously said has an estimated value of $6.8 million. Wood said the arena would generate new tax revenue, a portion of which would return to the project.
Under an agreement passed by the City Council last fall, Rancho Cordova would transfer pieces of city-owned property to the developers as “a free contribution to the project,” City Manager Micah Runner said in an October interview.
“That only happens,” Runner added, “if they get the financing put together and build the project.”
In a statement to The Bee on Thursday, city spokesperson Samantha Lieuwen said that the city and project partners are "still in active negotiations, and no final decisions have been made regarding the transfer, use or ownership structure for any city-owned sites.”
The city waived $940,000 in fees for the project, covering reviews for the design, infrastructure and building plans; a CEQA consultant review; zoning check fees; a grading permit; and city attorney’s fees to draft the development agreement, according to previous Bee reporting.
Mayor Garrett Gatewood told The Bee in February that the arena was one of the city’s “trademark most important projects” because it was the “first chance to have actual full entertainment” for residents, as well as bringing people from other areas of greater Sacramento to the city.
“We’re now on the map,” Gatewood said. “We’re not a city that you’ve never heard of before.”
The Bee’s Annika Merrilees contributed to this story.
