BaseCamp's Final Weekend in Kettering, and the Research Park Plan It's Testing
October 22, 2026
October 22, 2026
How do you get people to spend a Saturday at a 1,250-acre office park? Miami Valley Research Park reports that only about 450 of its acres are developed, and its 42 organizations employ around 4,400 people. Before building anything permanent to answer that question, the park is asking the public to show up and try it first.
BaseCamp is that trial. It's free and outdoors at 3139 Research Boulevard, it opened to the public Saturday, October 17, after a soft opening the night before, and it closes at 5 p.m. Sunday, October 25. If you go between now and then, the City of Kettering's announcement says your visit becomes part of the evidence. Organizers "look at who shows up, how people spend their time and what they say they want, then use that to guide the permanent improvements that come next."
The BaseCamp schedule from Field Work splits the event into an opening weekend, "The Big Week," and a final weekend. The last four days still offer something in the morning, at lunch and in the evening.
Thursday, October 22. Carr Coffee Co. serves from 7:30 a.m. to noon. Food trucks come for lunch from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner from 5 to 8 p.m. Trivia runs 6:30 to 8 p.m.
Friday, October 23. Lunch trucks run 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner trucks 5 to 8 p.m. Movie night starts at 7.
Saturday, October 24. This is the busiest day left. Tai chi runs 10 to 11 a.m., and Wild Banana is there 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Big Dogs Pizza serves from noon to 9 p.m. A kids' pumpkin carving contest runs 1 to 3 p.m., a bike ride goes out 1:30 to 3 p.m., and trivia closes the day from 4 to 6 p.m.
Sunday, October 25. Yoga runs 10 to 11 a.m., and Wild Banana returns 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. D's Birria and More serves 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and camp closes at 5.
Weekday food trucks rotate, so the truck at Thursday lunch may not be the one at Friday dinner. Field Work asks visitors to check its page before heading over because weather can change the schedule. The City also points people to BaseCamp's Instagram and Facebook for rain updates.
Parking is through Founders Drive, and admission is free. Food and drinks are for sale. Field Work lists free onsite parking, an accessible route, tables, Wi-Fi and restrooms. Families are welcome, and so are leashed dogs. The City says you don't need to work in the Research Park to come and you don't need a ticket. It even suggests bringing a laptop for an afternoon of outdoor work.
The laptop suggestion connects the whole event. BaseCamp is trying to fill the same lot with three groups: people who work in the park, people who live nearby, and visitors from across the Dayton region.
BaseCamp is the first visible piece of the Miami Valley Research Park Master Plan. The plan's cover is dated March 2026 and its subtitle reads "A working playbook for the next decade of growth." The City of Kettering, acting as the park association's developer, hired the urban design studio Yard & Company in 2025 to run the planning process.
The City's announcement quotes Assistant City Manager Bryan Chodkowski on why a workplace district needs a gathering spot:
"The City recognizes that in today's world, quality-of-life extends beyond how we live to how we work. The Miami Valley Research Park provides quality of life in the workplace through its intentional connections to nature. BaseCamp is the active extension of that connection in a more personal and social way."
The same announcement quotes Kevin Wright, a principal at Yard & Co., on the purpose of the 10 days: "Whether you're an employee, a visitor or a neighbor, this is your chance to show us in real time what you want to see in the Research Park." In the City's words, the team chose to try things with real visitors "instead of building first and hoping people come."
The plan's own numbers show what is riding on that approach.
The master plan describes Basecamp as an early project meant to "bring office park employees and neighbors into the same place," with nearby creeks as the setting. The permanent version calls for:
The plan estimates installation at $491,000 and programming at $12,000 a month. Its listed partners are the City of Kettering, ICP and the Dayton Food Truck Association. A year of programming at that rate comes to $144,000, close to a third of the build cost. The real commitment is keeping the place busy every week, so it makes sense to measure demand before spending.
The plan even sketches a daily rhythm for the permanent site. Weekday mornings would bring coffee and quiet seating, middays lunch hangouts and pop-ups, and evenings an open bar with music. Saturdays would add community pop-ups and wellness classes, and Sundays would offer creekside seating with acoustic music. This month's schedule follows the same pattern: Carr Coffee Co. in the morning, trucks at lunch, trivia and movies after work, yoga and tai chi on weekend mornings.
The plan's timeline lists programming and activating Basecamp among its earliest steps, along with recruiting a permanent Basecamp operator. Further out, it includes a "Basecamp 2.0 launch." The whole plan runs in four phases over ten years: Activation, Reframe the Park, Build Out the Core, and Create/Capture Opportunities. BaseCamp sits in the first of those phases.
Saturday's 1:30 p.m. bike ride previews the plan's main organizing idea. The plan treats greenways and trails as the backbone of the park, with connections to Beaver Creek, the Iron Horse Trail and Springhouse Park, plus trail loops near the ponds.
Funding varies from one trail piece to the next:
The plan estimates trails at $5 million to $8 million and park and open-space conservation and improvements at $15 million to $25 million. Next to those figures, the Basecamp estimate is small. The plan's timeline still pairs the two, listing "Activate Basecamp and Trails/Parks" as one step.
If BaseCamp fits around other plans this weekend, here is what else the City has scheduled:
BaseCamp closes at 5 p.m. Sunday, October 25, right after D's Birria and More finishes serving.
Plans like this one shape what this part of Kettering looks like over the next decade, from trail links to the places people gather after work. If you're wondering how projects like the Research Park plan fit into your own housing plans, whether you're staying put, moving up or getting ready to sell, Beacon Home Group is glad to talk it through with you, with no pressure. Schedule a Consultation, and we'll share what we're watching around the park.
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