DELTONA — The tables are set, the fake candles are lit and the sequined linens have been hung with care.

Officials hope the sparkling scene inside The Center will show that the brand new, approximately 30,000-square-foot building is ready to host residents' weddings, anniversary parties and other momentous milestones.

"I can hardly wait till we can show it to the public," Mayor John Masiarczyk said. "It looks really, really sharp."

Members of the media were given a preview Wednesday afternoon of The Center, 1640 Dr. Martin Luther King Blvd., which will have an open house at 3 p.m. Saturday.

Masiarczyk said the city has been due for a new community facility for some time, and he expects people from outside of the city will come to the open house to see what all the fuss has been about.

"It's time we did something first-class and nice," Masiarczyk said.

Chris O'Donnell, the facility's events manager, is confident there will be plenty of business to go around.

He said he's booked four weddings, and the first private booking of a part of the facility is for a 60th birthday party on Jan. 6.

Trinity Christian Academy is planning on holding its prom at The Center, and Southern Technical College will have a graduation ceremony there, O'Donnell said.

The Center cost about $9 million to build and broke ground 11 months ago.

The main banquet/ball room, which has a performance stage, can seat 700 theater-style or 500 at the round tables.

The Center also has a conference room, rooms for bridal parties and groomsmen to get wedding-ready in, a pre-function area just outside the main room, a full-catering kitchen and additional spaces for activities that may be divided into smaller rooms.

The facility has 150 white chairs that may be set up outside the white gazebo for an outdoor ceremony or event, too.

The entire building uses energy-efficient lighting with the lights coming on once someone enters a room, Inez Nazario-Vega, the facility administrator, said.

City spokesman Lee Lopez said the building has several camera ports throughout event areas that could be used for broadcasting award ceremonies and similar events.

"We can plug our cameras in and it feeds into the control room," Lopez said. "That way you don’t have cables running everywhere."

The Deltona Sunshine Senior Center, run by the Council on Aging, also will be able to move out of a 1960s building on Lakeshore Drive and into a larger space with their own kitchen where meals for seniors and the Meals on Wheels program will be prepared.

The space for the seniors includes a lounge area and 16 tables with eight chairs each. A pool table also will be brought in before the seniors relocate to The Center in February.

Revenue projections have varied. O'Donnell previously estimated the first year could bring in close to $1 million, but Commissioner Mitch Honaker said he believed the figure would be at least half of O'Donnell's estimate.

Masiarczyk said what will happen with the available parcels of land on Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard remains to be seen.

He said he could see a restaurant, a catering company or other businesses that offer services The Center could use going in sometime in the future.

"We can dream all day, but it's the people with the money and the time who [decide where they want their business to be]," Masiarczyk said.