Kroc Center is a recreational magnet in North Philadelphia

For children, it's a state-of-the-art place to learn and play. For parents, it offers one of the finest gyms in the city. It has a first-class aquatics center for people of all skills, and a place for worship.

Above all else, the sparkling new Salvation Army Kroc Center in the Nicetown section of North Philadelphia has become a place for families to come together and have fun.

For Miles Wilson, whose 7-year-old daughter is a competitive swimmer at the center, it's "just a beautiful place."

The $72 million facility on Wissahickon Avenue between Hunting Park and Roberts Avenues, which opened last November, has become a magnet for families seeking fitness and activity in an area long in need of recreational space.

"We have what we call wrap-around services," said Anita Hinson, program director at the 130,000-square foot facility on 12.4 acres of the former Budd Co. site, "which means there is something for every family member who attends Kroc, from worship . . . to fitness."

The center, filled with sunlight from its many large windows and skylights, includes an aquatic center with an indoor water park for children, a 10-lane competition pool, and several recreational pools.

There is a large gym for basketball and other sports, a fitness center with top-flight equipment, and a specialized staff of instructors. There is also an auditorium for worship and performing arts.

Wilson, 37, of Mount Airy, said he heard about the center through word of mouth before it opened.

"Once we got here, we were pleasantly surprised by the physical plant. The recreational pool, the competitive pool and the gym. All those things," Wilson said.

He said he comes to the center with his wife and his daughter, Mekhi, five nights a week for about three hours.

"It's really outfitted for anything you need to address," Wilson said.

"While my daughter is swimming, I get in a workout. Whatever I need to get accomplished while my daughter is swimming, I get done," Wilson said, adding that he also uses the facility's computer center.

Dirk Parker, 40, of Cheltenham, said he comes to the center with his wife, Carlena; son, Trey, 15; and daughter, Nia, 12, from four to six days a week.

"Not only is it a good pool for my daughter's swimming, I can actually go and work out," Parker said. "This is a great place for my whole family. . . . My wife does Zumba. There is so much more than swimming. This is state-of-the-art."

Randall Thomas, a spokesman for the Salvation Army, said the center has about 7,000 members and that many more are encouraged to join.

The center is funded by a grant from the Ray and Joan Kroc Foundation. Ray Kroc, who died in 1984, developed the McDonald's restaurant chain.

Joan Kroc, who died in 2003, donated $1.5 billion to the Salvation Army to develop Kroc Centers around the country. The Philadelphia center is one of 30 operating or being planned nationwide in under-served communities.

The center's aquatics director is Jim Ellis, the former Philadelphia Department of Recreation swimming coach whose work with competitive swimmers at the former Marcus Foster Pool in Nicetown was depicted in the 2007 movie Pride.

"This is it. This is the place to be," Ellis said. "We want our young people and their families to be very proud of this facility. . . . People know we are coming every day. They know conditions will be right every day."

Ellis said he was developing a competitive swimming team of about 40 members.

"We want to have one of the best programs for families," he said. "We want to put somebody on the Olympic team. We want to have all levels swimming and we want to do it well."

After swimming about a dozen laps in the competition pool this week, Municipal Judge James M. DeLeon, who also works at the center as a water safety instructor, hailed the facility as a safe and nurturing place for young people.

"It's great for them to put a place like this in the heart of North Philadelphia and spend millions doing it," he said.

Asked for his advice to those who have not visited the center, DeLeon, who teaches youth swimmers, said, "Come and look at it. You'll be amazed. It's really great.

"There are places for kids, both teenagers and young kids, to come and do their homework. It's a learning environment as well as a recreational environment."