CBC President & CEO Jim Goodmon (far left) joins officials in breaking ground on upgrades to the WRAL Soccer Center in north Raleigh on May 26, 2015.

Officials broke ground Tuesday, May 26, 2015, on a $3.8 million renovation project at the WRAL Soccer Center with the idea of turning the complex into a destination soccer park.

The project at the 35-year-old complex located in north Raleigh on Perry Creek Road will add paved parking, new restrooms, shelters, new turf and much more. The WRAL Soccer Center currently features 21 soccer fields on 118 acres and is home to the Capitol Area Soccer League (CASL).

The WRAL Soccer Center

“I’m really glad that Capitol Broadcasting can work with (CASL) on making this into a park,” said Jim Goodmon, president and CEO of Capitol Broadcasting Company, the parent company of WRAL. “They have really done a great job and I’m proud of them.”

CASL will use money from Capitol Broadcasting – both a grant and a loan — to pay for the renovations. With the upgrades, the park will also now be connected to the city’s Greenway and construction is expected to be completed by the fall soccer season.

Thanks to WRAL-TV’s Brian Shrader & NMG’s Aaron Schoonmaker for this capcom story & to WRAL-TV’s Ed Wilson for these capcom photos.