Local non-profit purchases Otter Fitness Garage

By Tucker Henderson

Reporter

The “Ottertail Community Project” has been a development in the works for the past three years and has just recently purchased the Otter Fitness Garage in Ottertail, as part of Phase I of their overarching plan.

“This all started about three years ago,” said Executive Director, Alex Rupe of Ottertail. “My husband, Tyler, and I lost childcare for our son—they were closing—so we were having a really hard time finding a new place to send our son. My husband had joked and said we should just start our own childcare and he came back two days later and said, ‘so I think we should start a nonprofit.’

“That’s kind of how this whole thing blew up,” she continued. “It started with day care and then we realized the benefit that having a community space would have on our community members and in surrounding areas. So it grew into finding a solution for childcare and then also access to a community space to serve Ottertail.”

The Ottertail Community Project is a combination of goals and relies on two nonprofit boards for its planning and fundraising needs. The first part of the project consists of the Ottertail Family Center which hosts four tenants of two townhouses in Ottertail, all of whom are licensed family childcare providers. The Family Center will also include a physical location on Maple Avenue near the townhomes, which will serve as a resource for the community in the future.

The second part of the project, the Ottertail Community and Wellness Center, is now open to the public at the former Otter Fitness Garage on Main Street. While rebranding is still in progress, the public is welcome to stop by and see what the space has to offer and what is in the works for the future.

“The Community Center will have a full size gymnasium with three pickle ball courts and the basketball courts, a three-lane indoor walking track, an indoor kids play area, a designated senior center and then we will have some party room and flex space for parties, meetings, classes—we’re planning on doing a lot of classes and programming—community education type of stuff and that will be the secondary space,” said Rupe. “We really wanted to provide access to healthy living, being able to have a healthy lifestyle, so by having this center here in Ottertail and really serving a wide age group of community members, we’re creating a space specifically for our seniors and doing a lot of programming and stuff for them. Not only to have access to a fitness space, but also the indoor track for walking or being able to do pickleball is going to be really great for that age group.”

With plans in the works, Rupe said that the boards are working on a timeline for completion on the family center in the fall of 2026. Until then, they are working on raising the remaining $400,000 and getting the community center started and serving the community this winter.

“People will start seeing some changes cosmetically over there, we’ve already done a lot of stuff with fixing some of the equipment, getting everything really deep-cleaned,” said Rupe. “Then we’re hoping to get a more robust class schedule going, just trying to build that community and work with people in and around Ottertail and the surrounding area, just really hone in on those core beliefs of community and belonging and access to a healthy lifestyle.”

One interesting aspect of the large community-wide project is the fact that the $5.8 million cost has not only been nearly fully raised, but it also has been raised primarily through private funding. The townhouses used for childcare were funded by a Minnesota Deed Grant, but the rest has been carefully fundraised through private channels.

“Our board is made up of people that live in Ottertail,” said Rupe. “This has all been them going out and raising funds to pay for these two spaces to serve our community. We are all very passionate about wanting to serve people in our area and to create this space for them to either have access to affordable childcare or to have access to a fitness space and a space where they can come together as community members.”

The Ottertail Community and Family Centers are aimed at being open to all ages and programming is being planned to match the needs of the community. From motor-skill activities for younger children to pickle ball for seniors and art classes for everyone in between, the centers will be part of a wide vision to serve the people of Ottertail and the surrounding communities.

“It’s not just Ottertail, but everyone around us as well,” said Rupe. “We really have a collaborative mindset with this space and are really excited to serve everyone. We’re really wanting to create a space for true fellowship for community members of all ages where they have a space where they really feel at home, they feel welcomed, and they are able to have a healthy lifestyle.

“Then also to learn more, to do more things, whether that’s coming to one of our art classes, or coming to a class to learn how to use social media, a lot of those types of things,” she continued. “Ottertail is starting to grow a bit, we see a lot of tourists in our area, so being able to show them how great our space is will be great for our town.”

On a more local level, Rupe said that being in the middle of New York Mills, Henning, Battle Lake and Perham, there is plenty of opportunity to collaborate with nearby communities to share amenities and make those amenities able to be utilized locally, rather than having to make a trip to Detroit Lakes, Fergus Falls, or Alexandria.

“The broad spectrum of it is really just serving the people that live here and visit here,” said Rupe. “I think we have a really unique opportunity to bring something to the area that we don’t necessarily have. We’re really trying to look at filling in the blanks, things that we maybe don’t have access to right now, but this space will provide that.”

A main priority for the space is to make sure that each individual who enters their doors are made to feel welcome and like they belong. Rupe described a “second home” type of atmosphere that will be available for young and old alike throughout the community and for any stage of life.

“We’re really trying to hit all the ages, so I’m looking forward to serve in that way and be that second home for people,” she said. “We’re really excited about this and we have lots of other really fun plans that we’re hoping to announce in the coming months. This is definitely one big development that we’ve had, so we’re excited to serve everyone and bring some new fun and exciting things with the addition of our second building next fall.”