EVANSTON — Dr. Justin Dennis of Impact Physical Therapy has big plans — not only for upgrading his practice, but to offer the community a long-desired recreational asset. 

“I’ve always wanted to do something for the community, not just for myself. I’ve wanted to do this for a while,” he said of his impending indoor turf field. “Everyone’s talked about this since we’ve been here. I’m going to figure out a way to do this so we can improve soccer and football opportunities. If I can get it going, we can do anything with it.”

Graduating with a doctorate from the University of Utah in 2003, Dennis, a Riverton native, previously practiced in California and Colorado before settling in Evanston with his wife, Emily, and their three children.

He began his current private practice on Yellow Creek Road in 2015.

“I treat differently — more hands on. My biggest referral source is word of mouth; it took a while to build my reputation,” he said.

As far as the turf field goes, there have been plenty of setbacks along the way. Initially, purchasing an athletic dome from Brigham Young University (BYU), Dennis realized that wouldn’t quite serve his vision. He would have needed a semi-truck for transport and a storage facility large enough to store it until he could rent a crane to construct it. He ended up offloading his dome to the school district when they chose to purchase others from BYU.

He was also discouraged by high-priced contracting bids, the rising costs of building materials and working through the tedious purchasing process. 

He has one last hoop to jump through — final approval from the city. However, Dennis is hoping to break ground in late April to facilitate a grand opening this fall. The 60-feet by 100-feet turf field will be built alongside and under a shared roof with his new therapy office on 2.5 acres across the street from the Evanston Rec Center, land he purchased from the city in 2020 through auction. The facility will accommodate 53 parking spots.

Dennis has been offered used turf from Utah State University, though he’s hoping to purchase new midgrade turf through Bridger Valley business Forever Lawn.

The Dennis’ nonprofit, itrisports.org, explains their mission as, “Our mission is to create a vibrant hub for athletic development, fostering a sense of community, teamwork and individual growth.”

They’ve begun fundraising efforts in addition to currently seeking out grants and private donations.

“My wife and I are doing this as private citizens,” Dennis said. “And Tim Beppler has been a big help getting donors and getting the word out.”

“This is a big thing for our community. Sports help with self-esteem, education and overall health,” Dennis said. “It helps with depression and morale. And we need this because of our long winters.”

Dennis is hoping to attract local kids and adult leagues for activities such as soccer, Wiffle ball, kickball, ultimate Frisbee and flag football.

“I think adults would love to play flag football,” he said. “Adults need something, too.”

The field would be open to the community “through a pay per fee, like the rec,” Dennis added.

Dennis has hope and plenty of room to grow based on public response to the field.

“I’d love to host ‘turf wars,’” he said, explaining a state-wide kids’ soccer tournament, typically held annually in Laramie. Dennis said he thinks about hypothetically expanding the turf field, or constructing a second field to host such events sometime in the future.

“There are a lot of people that think I’m crazy, and maybe I am. I’ll just be happy to break even. It’s a passion and a risk, it could blow up in my face, but this is my dream,” he said.