The National Soccer Hall of Fame has announced that it will open the doors of its new museum complex in Oneonta, N.Y. on Saturday, June 12. According to Hall of Fame President Will Lunn, there will be a grand opening dedication held at 2 p.m. open to the general public and the press. A variety of special commemoratives including a one-time issue museum pass will be available to those who visit the museum on opening day. “It will be a big day for soccer and Oneonta, an event twenty years in the making,” said Lunn. “We’re expecting a large crowd, Hall of Famers, dignitaries, celebrities, and the media. We’re coordinating the press with FIFA, Women’s World Cup, U.S. Soccer and MLS.” Construction on the Hall of Fame complex has been fast-tracked since the ground breaking in November. “This has been a case where team work and extraordinary effort have made it possible to get things done in a very short window of opportunity. I think we are still in shock that the building is so near completion,” Lunn said. The Hall employed a dozen contractors whose work was coordinated by construction management team from the At-A-Glance Group in Sidney. The overall project team includes At-A-Glance, Chase Design Inc., Clark Companies and Mack Studios. Mack and Chase are primarily responsible for the museum and the new KICKS Hall of Fame store. The $5.5 million, 40,000 square foot facility houses the museum, administrative offices, KICKs Hall of Fame store, library, meeting rooms, atrium and concession area. “The atrium is a very open, very bright room with lots of glass,” Lunn said. It is the first thing you see when you enter the facility. “The stairway and elevator shaft were created to provide an impressive platform and background for addressing large groups – inductions, official presentations and so on.” The museum is like another world. Designed as a sports museum and interactive “Kicks Zone” visitors will see and hear the little known, fascinating story of soccer and get in the action with hands-on, feet-on interactives that have visitors actually kicking and heading balls as well as being challenged with custom designed computer games. The Kicks Zone lets players test their skills and their strategy with speed dribbles, a header cage, animated ôKick Itö games, power shots, The Wall, three-on-three challenges and more. Computer kiosks throughout the Hall of Fame let visitors test their knowledge of soccer trivia and of the great moments in the history of the sport. The National Soccer Hall of Fame complex will continue to grow. ôThis is just Phase 1,ö said Lunn. ô”We are still fund raising for important aspects needed to insure our success this summer. We will also soon launch a national grass roots campaign for the next phase of construction – the stadium, more fields and the indoor arena. We are $7.5 million into a $15 million project. We hope to have most of the campus finished by 2003.” The cost when complete, will be near $15 million. ôThis is the first sports museum totally dedicated to soccer,ö said Lunn. The new Soccer Hall of Fame will be located at 18 Stadium Circle on the Wright Soccer Campus in Oneonta, New York. For additional information, check out the hallÆs web site at www.soccerhall.org or call the hall at (607) 432-3351.