Inside Jon Bostic's vision for the multimillion-dollar Wellington Sports Academy

WELLINGTON — Washington Commanders linebacker Jon Bostic is ready to put Palm Beach County "back on the map" with the Wellington Sports Academy, a "first of its kind" athletic training complex valued at $38 million.

In an exclusive interview with The Palm Beach Post, the Palm Beach Central High and University of Florida alum shared his excitement to pour back into the community that has propelled his continued success in the NFL.

The village of Wellington initially made a tentative agreement to cover $33 million of what was then estimated to be a $36 million build in July 2022, but now Bostic said he's financing the project solely on his own dime.

Tabbed to be the biggest practice facility in the state, spanning 127,204 square feet on a sprawling 17.2 acres, the Wellington Sports Academy has been designed by Bostic to serve athletes, coaches and families from the JV ranks to the pros. The academy, at 3401 South Shore Blvd., the former Wellington Community Park site, is slated to open Aug. 1, 2024.

"I believe if we give these kids the resources, coaches and the facilities, it will help a lot more of these young athletes in the South Florida area get a chance to go live a dream and play at the next level," Bostic said.

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What does the East Coast's 'top dog' training complex offer?

Wellington Sports Academy will provide training in 12 sports: baseball, softball, volleyball, basketball, lacrosse, football, soccer, wrestling, track, cheerleading, golf, and — last but not least — e-sports gaming.

Plans feature seven full indoor basketball courts and 13 full indoor volleyball courts, as well as a full multipurpose field for football, soccer and lacrosse, as well as a gaming lounge and a 6,551-square-foot cheerleading gym.

In addition to being a "major host" for a variety of indoor and outdoor Amateur Athletic Union tournaments and events, Bostic teased that the facility will have its own "academy teams," similar to IMG Academy in Bradenton, and serve as the new host site for Central High's softball and baseball teams.

The indoor complex designed for those spring sports will measure 9,706 square feet, offering eight full drop-down batting cages measuring 71 feet each, as well as two turf fields. Add the 102,873 square-foot main building and 14,625 square feet of "open turf," and the size of the entire facility comes to 127,204 square feet.

Wellington Sports Academy was made with the factors that created Bostic's success in mind. He hopes to prevent players and teachers from leaving the 561 in search of better opportunities or pay elsewhere while empowering athletes who may lack resources to "make it out."

"After taxes, a head coach in Florida is bringing home $1,700. Your good coaches are not going to coach or they're going to get poached away to Georgia and Texas. Even an assistant coach in Texas can make 10 grand," Bostic said.

"We've got to help out with that. Why not put a lacrosse academy here to say 'Hey, instead of going down there to Fort Lauderdale and Miami, come in here. We're going to get you the best of the best coach to come in here and a coach that has resources and connections to help you get to college,'" Bostic said. "That is the main thing."

'First of its kind' facility puts community and family first

"My father was able to give me the same blueprint his former college coach and now one of my mentors, Larry Little, gave him. Now it’s my chance to give it to the next generation," Bostic said.

The concept was built for family, by family.

"Everybody, whenever they look at this thing, they're going to assume, 'OK, a professional athlete came in here and designed this to be able to help this, but what people need to know as well is there are a lot of mothers in this community that designed this, and they have no idea," Bostic said.

Wellington Sports Academy was made to let the families of athletes vying for the next level spend more time together.

"The way I said I wanted to do this was how can I take mothers and make their jobs and days more efficient and easier," Bostic said. "If I can make their time that they're spending at that facility as convenient as it can be, I can create more family time at home."

The 13,511-square-foot weight room isn't exclusive to athletes-in-training. Any membership holder, including family members, can catch a workout. Bostic told The Post that membership levels and pricing will be released at a later date.

Struggling with injury and can't hit the weights? Wellington Sports Academy will provide members with 4,000 square feet of orthopedic physical therapy and chiropractic offices — plus an NFL-esque recovery center furnished with hot and cold tubs, saunas and steam rooms.

No need to stop by McDonald's for a hash brown before school or make the fatigued, post-practice grocery store run. Bostic made sure to include a full cafe that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

"For me, my massage therapist lives 25 minutes west of me. One of my trainers lives 20 to 25 minutes north and the other trainer lives about 35 to 40 minutes south — that's with no traffic," Bostic said. "There's not many facilities in the country where you can go and it's a one-stop shop where you have everything right there on-site."

"From 6:30 to 7:30, you get everything that you need to get done and you guys get home at 7:45 and you can eat dinner together," Bostic said.

A hub for professional athletes and those in the making

"I've been gone 10 years and I missed 90% of my brother's games just because, obviously, I'm playing and stuff on Sundays," Bostic said.

Bostic expects players like his brother, Justin, a Florida A&M defensive back signee, his teammates, and other athletes around the county will reap the benefits that come from being in the same environments as their role models growing up.

From training and conditioning the youngest athletes working their way up the ranks, Bostic wants the facility to prepare all of its members for not just life in the big leagues but what comes after.

That's why Wellington Sports Academy will also be the home of Bostic Sports Performance, a 6,687-square-foot high-level performance gym.

Bostic hopes that players and coaches will take advantage of the networking opportunities created by having a shared space that mainly serves as an offseason training hub for professional athletes and amateurs prepping for NFL and NBA combines.

Having seen a number who never graduated from college and lacked a game plan off the field fall through the cracks, Bostic said he's trying to take fellow professional athletes under his wing to "show them, 'Look, this is what you do. This is how you go about it. This is who you need to meet and build relationships with.'"

"I wanted other guys to be part of this," Bostic said. "There's so many guys that walk away from the game and all they have to show for it is a Maserati."

Bostic said he could have "easily" held local training camps for years.

"By doing a camp, I affect a kid one day out of 365 days. What about the other 364 days? Like I don't care or something?" Bostic said. "If I have the resources to help, I'm going to do everything I can to make that happen because I don't believe there's a price tag in America that you can put on these kids."

Recalling days in and out of team meetings as he balanced a career in the pros while building a business, Bostic said: "When my coach would look back and I had two iPads up — this is what I was doing."

"On paper, this has been about 2½ years — but this whole business model, it's been 9½ years that I've been putting this together," Bostic said.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Jon Bostic announces plan for Wellington Sports Academy, valued at $38 million