Cumberland County, PA continues to be one of the fastest growing communities in Pennsylvania. From 2010 to 2020, the population increased from 235,406 to 250,088, representing a growth rate of = 6.2%. With this population boom comes the need for additional outdoor recreational spaces, specifically outdoor field sport (i.e. soccer, lacrosse, field hockey) fields. While public and municipal parks meet some of this need, the desire for outdoor athletic space continues to outpace the ability of municipalities to build quality recreational facilities. Private companies continue to move into this space, but increasing rental prices makes accessible spaces unaffordable for individuals and families.
This rapid population growth has also had a dramatic effect on Keystone FC’s participant growth. In 2014, Keystone FC had 288 total participants. This past year saw Keystone FC’s total player pool eclipse 1,600 players with the 2024-25 numbers projecting even more. The need and desire for today’s youth to be physically active in a safe and healthy athletic environment is not slowing down and will only continue to grow as Cumberland County’s population grows.
As a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing affordable recreational opportunities for families in Cumberland County, Keystone FC seeks to provide an affordable athletic complex that will be able to bring together both the soccer community and a wide variety of youth sports fields across Central Pennsylvania. As a part of its mission, Keystone FC has provided over $115,000 in financial assistance to players and their families since 2020. Currently, there are no private sports complexes within forty-five minutes of Mechanicsburg. As Keystone FC continues to grow, so does the need for both synthetic turf and natural grass fields. Due to the growth of Keystone FC field space is in short supply. With limited field space impactful and important programming cannot occur and players are being turned away due to the lack of adequate field space. The complex that we envision would change that and allow programming to continue to evolve for players and community members of all ages.