With a turn of a shovel, a dream will end this morning in the City of Vidalia, more than a decade after it began.

What’s more, the awakened reality that will follow should far outweigh the dreams.

This morning City of Vidalia and Concordia Parish leaders will gather to ceremonially break ground on their new $6.5 million recreation complex.

The complex has been a long time coming.

Completion of the complex will be a dream come true and an answer to prayers of generations of Vidalia residents who dreamed of having state-of-the-art recreational facilities for their children.

Recreation leaders anticipate the complex will be completed in approximately one year.

Some people doubt the potential impact of such a project on the area, but clearly it has two significant benefits.

First, local citizens, whose tax dollars will fund the facility, will enjoy the benefits of having one, centralized, modern recreational complex.

Second, and perhaps more important, the community will reap the benefits such a complex can add to the community’s economic development base by attracting outside tournaments to Vidalia.

Finally, and perhaps most impressive of all, the Concordia Recreation Commission and the City of Vidalia have managed to fund the facility without having to raise taxes.

That’s a tremendous feat and one that will make many citizens smile today as they wake up and realize just how great tomorrow’s reality will be for the community.